what is this noise in the hive?

i posted a thread on here last year about a crackling noise inside one of my hives but nobody could really answer,i was up today moving the same hive and heard the same noise,it seems to be coming from behind the front door,i have a video and you can hear the crackling on it,as its not coming from my other two hives am curious as to what it is,
Darren
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XPgJAc6y4g[/ame]

Sounds like applause to me.

Salt and vinegar crisps...... or are they on the rice crispies.... snap, crackle and pop!

Or perhaps they've lit a bonfire inside? Was it cold?

On the other hand, bees sometimes chew things. Obstructions when they feel like opening up to enlarge the brood nest or increase ventilation. And polystyrene - they just love to chew that.

I understood that this was the noise of the bees' jaws as they chewed away wood or some other obstruction. Say for example as they tried to enlarge the hive entrance.

Careful Gavin.

Some soft ploy they can chew but not the "proper" stuff.

PH

i think they left a tap running

Their own little rendition of Riverdance !!.
Ive heard a similar sound when a hive of mine were chewing through the entrance block, what materials do you have inside ? Wood, metal, plastic? Poly

Poly Hive said:

Careful Gavin.

Some soft ploy they can chew but not the "proper" stuff.

PH

Click to expand...

Quite right, sloppy wording. They do love to chew the cheap stuff that you might put in to help insulation - it was a wooden hive after all.

I'm told (by the Lion Tamer himself) that they also may chew some edges of the dense stuff where they see light, so painting the edges of the feeder box in a full poly National (the edges that contact the box below) is wise, perhaps with polyurethane varnish.

Anyway - Biglongdarren's bees were probably chewing wood, sensing a smallish entrance and calculating their need for high traffic in a months or two.

G.

Is this not the sound of them working wax? Either uncapping stores or actually building comb.

Darren,
I played to a neighbour's child earlier and she made two observations:

1. It is the bees talking to each other.

2. They are eating with their mouths open.

Not sure myself so what do I say to her???

Sam

keith pierce said:

i think they left a tap running

Click to expand...

Me thinks that too:.)
Gosh, your hives have a kitchen sink too?

My bees are going mad in the garden today collecting water from any place they can find it. This suggests they are uncapping a lot of stores - and they would make the noise recorded whilst doing so.

Death watch Beetle got its name as it makes a similar noise and liked old oak in churches, and during the quiet of a funeral it could be heard knocking.

Mine made that noise last season, they chewed a new entrance for themselves!

I commenced a Bailey Comb change to get them onto 14x12 and up in the brood box with new foundation I heard the same noise today, perhaps it is multiple bee mandibles.
regards Jim

Deep fat fryer...