Brood Pattern

[brushwoodnursery]

Here's a picture from an inspection the other day. This is the hive I've just started watching for a nearby Nature Center. The bees are generally looking pretty good. I was wondering about this brood laying pattern. Looks like a spiral. Tighter in the center but it looks like she spun wide on the pattern. Opinions?

[bailey]

Looks like early expansion around pollen.  Hatched cells in the open areas? Can't see if it is back filled with eggs or larvae.
Bailey

[divemaster1963]

they broke cluster when we had that warm spell then went back tight again. that will give you the spiral pattern. keeping the larve warm with cluster.


John

[Finski]

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Spiral have come so that the queen has started to lay from center.
Then the cluster grows and it is possible to lay wider area.
Then they are situation that center has capped brood and periphery has you larvae and eggs.

3 weeks later first capped brood has emerged and they are laid and reared to capped brood.
Emerging has moved towards periphery and you see only narrow zone of emerging brood. Next to it you see
eggs and larvae (open cells)

That is very normal

larvae +eggs are 8 days and pupae are 13 days.  = almost 1+2 weeks

.

[brushwoodnursery]

Empty in that blank part of the spiral lower left. That was my concern.

[Finski]

Empty in that blank part of the spiral lower left. That was my concern.

If hive has lack of pollen, they eate larvae and do not rear them any more.

.You have there perhaps "winter".

[divemaster1963]

Finksi: we are on the waining of winter. Mix bag Of warm periods then freeze periods. some warm days last up to a week then cold snap can last 2-4 days then warming again.

we are on the edge of the line between light tropic and the median line. plus closer to eastern mountain range there in the northwestern part of the state. sort of like the southern part of Europe between Spain  and southern France. somewhat like that climate.

John

[Finski]

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I cannot see what you have there. But I see that if the hive has so much brood it is summer there. That much brood needs continuous pollen flow. Brood pattern is very good and guite normal.

But you need not explain every hole in the brood frame. They are seldom evenly capped.