Maintaining a drone population

**Mellifera Crofter** · 10-09-2014, 08:35 PM

Originally Posted by Jon

... Came across the latter stages of a mating swarm today as well, a little cluster with a queen ... I'll have a look in a couple of days to see if she made it back in one piece. ...

So did you leave them on top of the water bottle, Jon?
Kitta

**Jon** · 10-09-2014, 09:55 PM

The queen took off but I don't know if she flew to the apidea or over the horizon!

**Little_John** · 11-09-2014, 10:15 AM

To draw on 'military-speak' ...

I think from a tactical point-of-view, bees have got it nailed: for they can forage and select what they need from whatever they find 'out there'; they have the ability (somehow) to assign to themselves whatever jobs need doing around the hive, and without anybody (apparently) being in charge. They can self-regulate temperature and humidity within reasonable limits. All clever stuff.

But from a strategic viewpoint - they fail miserably. I checked a hive yesterday from which a virgin had emerged 2 1/2 weeks ago. Not a dicky-bird to be seen in the way of eggs or larva. Did she make it ... who knows ? I'll just have to wait and see, and combine 'em if she didn't. But that hive had 8 viable emergency queen cells - and they let that gal knock-off 7 of them. Pretty pi$$-poor planning, in my view.
And mating conditions haven't been that great - that is, until the last couple of days. I bet now they wish they'd kept a couple of virgins in reserve ...

LJ

**Feckless Drone** · 11-09-2014, 11:03 AM

To continue the military speak - Bunker hill "wait till you see the white of their eyes." 2 1/2 weeks since emergence is too soon to make a decision about what is happening, still leaves time for laying to start. I've had two colonies get to the end of the season then in one case kick out a Q after uniting or in the other just decide to swarm. In both cases took 4 weeks for laying to start. That's 4 weeks from emergence to seeing eggs not brood. In one case I knew the Q was there cause I saw her, in both cases the colonies were strong, bees were calm and with stores (no pollen) around cells being kept clean and ready for eggs. I always look for the pollen to start going in (I know its not 100% but still a pretty good indicator) as a sign laying is just about to or has started. So - at ease Sir, at least until after the referendum, Damn! I mentioned it.

**gavin** · 11-09-2014, 01:36 PM

Originally Posted by Feckless Drone

Damn! I mentioned it.

Is there an appetite for mentioning it much more, and is there a beekeeping side to this? Is there a need for a heavily moderated corner on SBAi?

There is some discussion on another forum, and it isn't pretty. Stuff I've seen on FB is very polarised, mostly just the converted speaking to the converted, and when someone comes in with naive stuff from the other side (whatever that is!) the temptation is just to de-friend them so that you don't receive more of it.

**Adam** · 16-09-2014, 12:45 PM

Jon, you do seem to get the odd gammy leg with your queens.. not something I've seen. I guess it's a genetic thing. What happens to them?

**Jon** · 16-09-2014, 02:20 PM

I thought at first it was genetic but apparently it happens when a worker stings a queen on a leg joint which paralyses the leg. Manley wrote about it. It can happen when a queen returns from a mating flight and gets stung by a worker. I have also noticed that queens I have rescued from balling often have a gammy leg afterwards which is due to picking up a sting during the melee. A queen can also get damaged when she is in the introduction cage if she gets stung through the cage. If the bees are not ready to accept a queen they will pull at her feet if she has no hiding place in the cage and this can cause damage. Some of them lay ok and I am happy to use them but often the brood is a bit spotty so they get squished.

**busybeephilip** · 16-09-2014, 02:53 PM

I've got one like this on the go at the moment. She was fine before introduction but i noticed it later after she was laying a while. AS you say the egg laying pattern can be a bit erratic, like Jon I just replace with another. Aggravation from the workers during introduction is the most logical explanation maybe she is released too quickly.

**Duncan** · 16-09-2014, 05:28 PM

There is also the question of drone quality versus quantity. Full combs of drone brood are not desirable if you want to produce QUALITY drones. One third of a brood comb seems to be about the maximum amount for good quality drones. They may produce many more, but they are of inferior quality. Rather like getting a colony to feed 100 queens cells at a time. The raising of drones is an enormous effort for the colony and needs good conditions as regards pollen availability. Drone quality is very obvious when doing AI.