INTRODUCTION TO BEEKEEPING

Session 6 - QueensSat 29th/Sun 30th March 2014

Introductions Rob Page Experience

The Queen

Female Lives for 3-5 years Mates in early life Anatomically different to other females Characterises the colony After mating only leaves colony when

swarming

Gender & Castes

W Q D

Egg

Fertilisation Unfertilised

Brood food - 3days Royal Jellythen

Pollen and Honey

Extra Brood food - 3daysthen

Extra Pollen & Honey

Female larva(Diploid)

Male larva(Haploid)

Laid in drone cellLaid in worker cell

(Parthenogenesis)

Queen development

Egg laid in cup 3 days to hatch

Fed royal jelly from hatching Fed for 5 days Gets 1600 visits from workers to

feed cf 150 visits for a worker larva

Cell hangs downward Food in cell when sealed

Pupal development quite different Proteins switch on different

genes Emerges after 8 days as pupa

16 Days

Adult queen Accepted into any colony when

hatched 4 days to mature Then fed by workers

Goes on mating flights First 3 weeks Stays in hive afterwards

Lays up to 2000 eggs a day More than body weight High energy digested food Egg laying controlled by food

intake

20 - 45 days

Drone development

Egg laid in large cell 3 days to hatch

Fed brood food for 7 days Pupates for 14 days Adult matures for 10

days Feeds itself

Lives ~3 months Fed by workers Dies when mating

24 Days

34 Days

Mating

Drone collection areas Pheromone attractants Drone paralysed Multiple flights 15-20 matings ~10,000 drones ~50 m diameter

Desirable colony characteristics

Gentle but robust Healthy

Disease resistant Hygienic behaviour

Hard working Cold weather opportunists

Large colony Slow to swarm

Economic in winter

Queen rearing

Colony characteristics Queen eggs

Colony characteristics Drone producers

Selected apiary Good mating Constant

characteristics Natural mating

Honey bee races

Apis mellifera mellifera – British economical, hard working ligustica – Italian gentle, large colony carnica – German economical, gentle, swarmers caucasia – E European economical, hard working scutellata – African not gentle, healthy, tropical Local bees – cross bred - bit of everything

Strains have diverse characteristics but are more predictable than cross bred bees

Ease of handling - 1920s

No protective clothing

Bees all over her arms & dress

Pearl necklace! Why do we not have

bees like this anymore?

Cross bred bees Unpredictable outcomes Recessive genes F1 - vigour F2 etc - ??? Adaptable Disease tolerance Natural

Selective breeding Instrumental

insemination OK for the dedicated Learn to produce a lot of

queens and drones Not for the local amateur

Natural mating Element of chance Local variation

Assess queen quality

Let the queens mate and start colonies

Move away to permanent sites Let them build and assess qualities Select better quality colonies Keep records!!

Expect to cull queens with poor quality progeny

Marking and clipping a Queen Practice on drones

and workers Never touch her

abdomen Colour code

W,Y,R,G,B Only mark the

thorax Ensure paint is dry Carefully replace

the queen Sharp scissors