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I left the last of my five splits to the end of today's inspection - all queenright judging by the amount of open brood but I have been fretting about this hive. There's been a smell of dead animal near it that has had me searching the grass and sniffing under the hive floor but to no avail.
The brood pattern just doesn't seem quite right even for a queen that is getting going after a distinct June gap and whilst I can't see anything obviously amiss with the open brood, it just doesn't look right; although an EFB lateral flow device has come back OK.
So I have shared some pictures with my bee inspector, who also doesn't see anything obvious but is going to come over and have a look.
Thank goodness we still have an NBU and I for one am always grateful to be able to call them in.
I'll keep you posted..................

Yes keep us posted please..i had a a big colony that went through winter fine but on first inspections and a few later i smelt a dead animal smell..that smell has now gone and the hive is very healthy apart from loosing the 2018 Queen but that is another story..

Update - our Bee Inspector couldn't see anything obvious in the photos I sent him but is erring on the side of caution and offered to come over.
In the meantime, I have discovered the source of the rotting smell. I have long grass in front of my hive stands; which are 18" tall - and so hasn't been a problem - until now Hiding in the grass was a large pile of dead bees and a quick check revealed much smaller piles in front of other hives - one of which had a couple of bees alive crawling over the dead bees.
Unlikely to be poisoning because no-one has recently sprayed; you have probably got it by now....
We are going through the hives next week looking for black bees without hair and bees shivering their wings but not flying.... (have to say I haven't noticed any
Not got it yet? CBPV is a likely culprit so I'll report when someone competent has been through. In the meantime the grass is cut and will remain cut and I am rethinking my disease control.

Had CBPV last year - one hive had a LOT of bees in front of it, dead and crawling. And it did smell for quite some time.

I have had a bad incident of CBPV A couple of years ago. Not pleasant to see but they recovered fine.

When I had a full apiary disease check by the NBU years ago they found several low level things such as Apis ceranae present.

Like humans, I suspect many bees carry a lot of things at low levels which flare up occasionally. Always have, always will. Don’t take these too personally but as Hever mentions in the other thread, take sensible care in your hygiene between inspections.

Patrick wrote: ↑

18 Jun 2020, 17:17

When I had a full apiary disease check by the NBU years ago they found several low level things such as Apis ceranae present.

I didn't know you were keeping some real exotics Patrick....Asian Honey bees. Well I never /huge grin/
Perhaps you meant nosema ceranae? Have you been hitting the lockdown evening G&T a bit early......

Oops, well spotted that man! No wonder they looked a bit different !

If they had found Apis ceranae I should have had a visit from the BBC not the NBU surely ?

Wow - 31 degsC but the bee inspector and I got the inspections done.
Fortunately only one hive with mild CBPV and I am going to move it to my out apiary so it doesn't transfer it to the other hives (shutting the stable door......)
and the foul smell was definitely the dead bees at the front of the hive -no more long grass just in front of the hives.

My worst affected hive with CBPV was sandwiched between two others who showed no signs of it, so from my small sample of one, it doesn't necessarily transfer to others. Although as a well known tennis player in Croatia DIDN'T say recently, "you can't be too careful!" when disease is about.