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Should I Stay, Or Should I Go (Says the Queen)?

  • Writer: Terrilyn Clardy
    Terrilyn Clardy
  • Aug 7, 2018
  • 2 min read

When does the queen honey bee leave the nest or hive?



Remember in order for any species to survive, it must reproduce. Thus, the reproduction of the nest or hive is solely dependent on the queen leaving the hive or nest.


Swarming is the natural reproduction process that insures the survival of the nest or hive. If the nest or hive becomes overcrowded, the old queen takes about 60% of the worker bees and leaves the hive. This group is known as a swarm.



Bee Swarm

In the process of swarming, the original colony breaks and forms two or more colonies.

Are there signs that indicate that the colony is preparing to swarm? If the worker bees create queen cups throughout the year and the queen lays eggs into the queen cups, this might indicate a possible swarming.


New queens are raised, the queen cells are capped and before the new virgin queens emerge the hive may swarm. Swarms contains thousands to tens of thousands of bees. Swarming creates an interruption in the brooding cycle because the queen isn’t feed and she stops laying eggs in order to prepare for the short flight. Most swarms only travel a short distance, for example they may travel only 20 to 30 meters away from

the natal nest for a few days.


Scout bees search for suitable cavities to construct the swarms home. Successful scouts will return and report the location of suitable nesting sites to the other bees. Do the scouts determine the final site? Yes, an individual scout will return to the cluster to promote a certain location. She will do a waggle dance to indicate direction, distance and quality to the cluster. The excitement of the waggle will determine the level of enthusiasm for that particular site. This is conveyed to the cluster for their

approval.


What does a waggle dance look like? (smile) Well, just think of a figure eight on skates. The direction the bee moves in relation to the hive indicates direction; if it moves vertically the direction to the source is directly toward the sun. The duration of the waggle part of the dance indicates the distance. Waggle dancing usually implies a long

distance.


Bees waggle but they round dance, too. How would one tell the difference? The round dance is circular and the waggle is in a figure eight. The round dance indicates that the source is closer to the colony. Longer distances usually are communicated using the waggle.


Sometimes both dances are intermingled. The waggle and the round dance are used to not only locate a new nesting site but also to communicate both nectar and pollen sources.

 
 
 

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