Beekeeping In January

by

Brian Fackler – Cornell University Master Beekeeper

The Bee Cluster: The bees are in a compact cluster since the ambient temperature
dropped below 57F. As the temperature lowers to freezing the bees generate heat with
heads facing inward and consume a great amount of honey also give off a great amount
of water. The bees rotate positions and are active in the cluster center. Most of the
colony will be rearing brood and maintaining the brood-rearing temperature in the brood
area of 92F. This area must be dry, and an efficient ventilating or condensing hive must
be maintained to control moisture.


Hive Entrance: The hive entrance needs to be open as bees will take a short cleaning
flight to void fecal matter on a sunny calm day. Clear your hive entrance of blockages by
snow, ice, and or dead bees. Keep the entrance reducer and mouse guard installed.

Starvation: Bees will break the cluster for the worker bees to move into areas where to
resources that are stored. The bees will starve if they do not have access to the
resources or are too cold to break the cluster. You can get an idea of how much
resources the hive has stored by hefting the hive and comparing it to previous
monitoring. If you suspect or are in doubt, feed the bees with fondant, sugar patties, or
100% plain white granulated sugar and not organic or brown sugar. Make fondant and
or sugar patties with recipes from Lane County Beekeepers – https://www.lcbaor.org.
Checking for starvation or adding emergency feed can be done from the hive top.

Dead Bees: You might notice dead bees as well as brown spots of fecal matter in front
of the hive. This is typically not a concern. The bees may have frayed wings and hair
loss, which are indications of old age and desire to die outside the hive. Monitor the
bottom and landing board for excessive dead bees as the undertaker worker bees may
not be able to remove.


Varroa: Monitor the sampling board for dropped dead mites and consider multiple
applications of oxalic acid vapor following the guidelines of Honey Bee Health Coalition
Tools for Varroa Management.


Reflection and Preparation: This is the time to reflect on last year’s success and
failure and consider your 2025 bee year. Make a plan to control varroa mites and now is
the time to order cultural and miticides to have them on-hand. Take inventory of
wooden ware and frames and repair, paint, and replace as needed. If you anticipate
needing new bees place your order for NUCs and or packages, as later this spring they
often are unavailable.

November 2025 Meeting

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Brian Fackler / Nosema

Brian Fackler is a Cornell Master Beekeeper and Washington State Master Beekeeper, serving as the Secretary and Treasurer of the Portland Urban Beekeepers. He is an experienced apiarist with extensive beekeeping experience throughout the Portland metropolitan area and along the Oregon coast.

October 2025 Meeting

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Reading the Combs: Understanding Bee Biology Over the Course of the Season
Randy Oliver Grass Valley CA

ScientificBeekeeping.com

Randy Oliver is a lifelong beekeeper, researcher, and educator with over five decades of experience in apiculture. After beginning as a hobbyist in 1966, he earned degrees in biological sciences with a specialization in entomology before establishing a large-scale migratory beekeeping operation in California, now managed with his sons Eric and Ian. Widely known for his applied research on honey bee health and practical solutions to modern beekeeping challenges, Randy has published monthly articles in American Bee Journal since 2006 and is a sought-after speaker at beekeeping conferences worldwide. Through his writing and presentations, he is dedicated to translating complex scientific research into clear, useful guidance for beekeepers of all levels.

June 2025 Presentation

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Dawn Beck – Bow, WA

Dawn Beck is a Northwest native living in the Skagit Valley and a retired CPA. She received her Master Beekeeping Certificate from the University of Montana in 2020 and became a Master Beekeeper through Cornell’s challenging program in 2024. 

Dawn serves beekeeping organizations as President or Vice President in three local clubs and is on the board of WASBA.  However, her true love is helping beekeepers learn to overwinter their bees and feel successful.  She is the apiary manager or assistant for three club apiaries and cares for about 40 hives.  Dawn has two grown children and loves spending time with her husband and hiking while travelling or staying close to home with her two dogs)

May 2025 Presentation

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Botany for Beekeepers

Fonta Molyneaux is a Mother of 3, Master Herbalist, organic farmer and professional beekeeper living and working on her farm Wild Everlasting outside of Cottage Grove Oregon. There she tends 30 hives, and grows over 100 varieties of medicinal herbs and heritage fruit trees and shrubs. 

Fonta also owns and operates Sun Queen School of apiary arts. In its 8th season, teaching beekeeping education and mentorship in person and online. She is the past president of the Lane county beekeepers association as well as the current Educational coordinator. For more information www.wildeverlasting.com

Fonta’s Botany and Bees handout

SwarmReport.org FAQ

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 This guide covers how things work for Members — from receiving texts to taking action.

What number will text messages come from?

All alerts will be sent from 818-643-3991. Save this number to avoid missing any alerts.

What is a Swarm Alert?

You’ll receive a swarm alert when:

  • A new swarm is reported
  • You are within range
  • You’re available according to your settings
  • The elevation is within your allowed threshold

Each alert includes a 5-digit claim code.

Who receives an alert?

The system identifies eligible Members — people whose range, elevation, and availability match the swarm. Alerts are then sent to those Members simultaneously.

How do I claim a swarm?

Reply to the alert with the exact claim code (e.g. 01134).

If it’s still available, the swarm will be assigned to you. You’ll receive a message like:

Congratulations!
SWARM INFO
Name: Alice
Phone: 503-123-4567
Address:
123 Honeybee Ln, Portland, OR

Log in at https://member.swarmreport.org if you need to "Un-claim" the swarm or "Mark as Bad".

 What happens if I text something else?

Only two types of messages are recognized by 818-643-3991:

  • Valid claim codes (e.g. 01134)
  • Twilio commands like START or STOP

Any other message will be ignored.

How do I control when I get alerts?

  • Set your availability schedule (custom day/time windows per week)
  • Configure your range in miles to limit alerts to local swarms
  • Set a maximum elevation for alerts
  • Toggle Do Not Disturb to temporarily stop alerts

After claiming a swarm –

You have two options if you’re unable to collect it:

  • Un-claim: Releases the swarm so another Member can take it.
  • Mark as Bad: Flags the swarm as unreachable, invalid, or no longer active. This removes it from the system and notifies the admin.

You can find these options by logging into https://member.swarmreport.org and locating the claimed swarm under “Claimed Swarms.”

You only have 24 hours to take action — after that, you will no longer see these options for this swarm.

What happens if I don’t claim a swarm?

Members receive alerts in staggered batches based on recent claim activity. If you’ve recently claimed a swarm, you’ll receive future alerts later than others:

Recent ClaimsDelay Before Receiving Alert
0Immediate
110 minutes
220 minutes
330 minutes
440 minutes
550 minutes
6+60 minutes

How is my location used?

Your address is turned into a latitude/longitude point and used to determine if you are in range for a reported swarm. Your exact location is never shared with others.

How do I give feedback?

You can leave feedback in two ways:

How do I leave an association?

Go to your profile and click the red trash icon next to the association. This removes you immediately and stops all alerts from that group.

What does Do Not Disturb do?

It silences all alerts until you turn it off. Ideal for vacations, sick days, or when you’re unavailable.

April 2025 Presentation

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Judy Scher

Judy has been an urban beekeeper in Eugene, OR for 23 years.  She is a past president of Lane County Beekeepers Association and worked on the Oregon Master Beekeeper planning committee. She is especially fascinated by the biology of honey bees, plays banjo and loves cats. 

  • Spring Management – everything you need to know about shepherding your bees towards a successful summer.
  • Mid to late spring hive management is an important step in preventing spring starvation, preparing for the expansion of hive population, controlling mites, recognizing swarm preparation, and preventing swarms. This talk takes us up to the major honey flow in June.

Intro by Dewey Caron PhD regarding the PNW Honey Bee Survey

Dead Colony Forensics by Dewey M. Caron