It’s been 12 days since we captured the feral hive (nicknamed “Martha” after the landowner on whose property the hive was discovered.) If things are going well, the queen should be laying, and we might even see some capped brood – time for an inspection.
The hive inspection begins.
The frames of the hive are an odd combination of plastic and wooden frames, comb from the original hive mounted in split frames, and a honey-filled drone frame taken from another colony.
Comb from the original hive. The bees have joined the pieces into a single unit. Kind of interesting, but the frame takes up a lot of space, and I’m going to swap it out.
Lots of pollen and capped honey in this frame.
Developing larvae were apparent. The milky substance in the larval cells is royal jelly.
Dr. Hurst finds the queen. He seems to have a talent for this that I have not yet acquired. Note the capped brood in the background. This hive is officially declared as established!