Bee attack?

[Jennybee]

I am a new beekeeper.  My bees have been in their new hive for 6 weeks.  On Saturday the 27th of  May, at 4pm it seemed as if a hundred bees or so swirled in front of the hive for 10 mins.  It happened again today, the 30th at 5pm.  I've had a shakey start with my bees.  They have not filled the hive body they are in.  I have seen bee larvae at about week 3 or so.  As of the 30th there were no eggs that I could see or larvae, only capped honey, not very much of that.  Can somebody tell me what the great number of swirling bees means.

[Brian D. Bray]

Sounds like the bees don't like their accommadations.  Was the queen killed in the 1st look-see?
Sounds like you need to beg or barrow a frame of fresh brood from another hive.  
If they draw a queen cell amid the brood cells you are queenless and will rear a replacement which will get you through this year, requeen next year.  The bees will be less likely to abscond if there is brood.  
Did you make another newbee mistake and paint the inside of the hive along with the outside?
Did you use a Oil or non-latex based paint or stain?

[Michael Bush]

In my experience, usually, if they are going to abscond, they will cluster on the outside of the hive for a while ( a few hours to a few days), like a swarm, and then take off for the wild blue yonder.

Maybe they superceded their queen and she's going on a mating flight?

[IndianaBrown]

Jenny,

I am new myself, but I have noticed a bunch of extra activity at my hives at around the same time every day in the late afternoon.  In my case, it looks to me like the extra traffic is just orientation flights combined with the drones comeing home for the day.  The bees fly around facing the hive, often doing a 'figure-8' pattern.  I would not worry about the flights themselves if they look like this.  

However it sounds like you may have more serious problems if you have no brood.  The experts here can offer more help with that.

[Brian D. Bray]

Charly's right.

I don't know what I was thinking.  It was the time of day that bees changing into foragers and Drones do theie orientation flights.  Mid-afternoon is a good time to see a lot of activity.