In a hive, the queen bee is the center of the colony. She is the only female bee that lays eggs. Worker bees are dedicated to taking care of the queen bee. They feed it, clean it and keep it cold. Queen bees rarely leave the hive after mating. She is still protected inside, served by worker bees.
But sometimes worker bees kill their queen. This may seem surprising because it is so important. However, worker bees have good reason to discard the old queen.
The Queen’s Egg Laying Declines
During the peak of her life, the queen bee is capable of laying eggs. amazing egg laying ability. She can lay up to 1,500 to 2,000 eggs per day, the highest egg production rate of any insect in the world. Some bees can even lay more than 3,000 eggs per day. The queen termite can maintain this extremely high reproductive rate for about 2-3 years. During this peak period, it ensured the rapid growth and prosperity of the colony. Her prolific egg-laying ability results in a hive of up to 60,000 bees busy working together at the height of summer.
However, as the queen ages, her ability to lay eggs of the queen bee will decrease. Queen termites usually live for 2 to 5 years. When she was over three years old, her egg production decreased markedly. An old queen bee may lay only a few hundred eggs per day instead of the healthy 1,500 when young. Older queens also tend to lay more unfertilized wasp eggs than fertilized eggs, which will develop into the very important worker bees the hive needs.
Intelligent worker bees are finely tuned to match the queen’s egg laying rate and the general needs of the colony. When they feel that the queen is waning and cannot maintain sufficient egg production, the worker bees begin to house new queen larvae in specially constructed queen cells.
The Queen Gets Sick or Injured
Queens can get sick from a variety of causes, including parasites, viruses, bacterial infections, and physical trauma. Varroa mites are one of the most dangerous parasites that affect the queen bee. These small mites attach to the queen bee and feed on its blood (insect blood). A heavy infestation of Varroa can weaken and even kill a queen. Ticks also act as vectors, transmitting viral diseases such as varicella. Queen termites are also susceptible to fungal and bacterial diseases that make them too weak to lay eggs properly.
Physical injuries, such as damaged wings or legs, can also cause termites. God is incapacitated. The queen bee must be able to fly to mate, so an injured wing will prevent the queen from leaving the hive to mate with the drones. An injured leg prevents it from getting through the comb to lay eggs. If there is no queen bee laying fertilized eggs, the whole colony will perish.
When it becomes clear that the queen is too ill or injured to continue performing her duties, the worker bees will chase the bees. queen leaves the hive and kills the queen bee, a process known as replacement. This is necessary to prevent the spread of infectious diseases to other members of the colony. It also signals to worker bees that it’s time to raise a new queen to take over the hive. The old queen dies and this new queen takes her place.
The new queen will start laying eggs in a few weeks and the cycle will continue. The loss of a queen is always a major disturbance, but highly organized bee societies have developed methods to replace shed queens and quickly ensure the continuation of the colony.
The Hive Gets Too Crowded
During the hot summer months, the parent hive of a thriving bee colony can become very crowded. When the queen bee lays up to 3,000 eggs a day, the hive can quickly become overcrowded. When a hive is overcrowded, it is difficult for the queen’s pheromones to effectively disperse throughout the hive and the entire colony. Its control over the colony is weakened as the worker termites cannot perceive its presence strongly.
Crowded and stressful conditions also encourage the worker termites to build colonies. queen cells. When the worker bees feel that the queen is losing influence, they will solve the problem on their own.
As soon as the first new queen appears, half of the workers will form a swarm. with the old queen and leave the hive to find a new home. This formation process reduces overcrowding and allows the herd to spread out and form two nests. However, the old queen must be killed after the main colony leaves. If she goes back to the original hive, she may attempt to kill the newly developed queens, thus disrupting the colony. Worker termites forcefully squeeze and strangle the old queen to preserve the power of the new queen.
Killing the old queen after dividing the colony ensures that a proper succession process can take place. go out. Then the remaining young virgin queen can take over the original hive. She will quickly mate and begin laying eggs to reproduce the dwindling flock. The instinct to swarm and kill the queen allows bees to maintain a strong queen and avoid overcrowding.
There Are Rival Queens
Having multiple queens at once in a hive. will inevitably lead to conflict. Virgin queens can appear even when the queen mother is healthy and productive. There are several reasons why worker bees start raising a new queen while the current queen is doing well:
1. The colony is getting ready to swarm
Worker bees begin queens in preparation for the main swarm to leave with the old queen. The remaining virgin will take over the original colony.
2. Insurance against queen failure
Worker bees keep a new queen if the reigning queen refuses or dies unexpectedly. This ensures immediate replacements are available.
Regardless of why the new maidens appear, having more than one queen in a hive is extremely annoying. . The Old Queen will seek out and attempt to kill any newly spawned Virgin Queens she encounters. She wants to maintain her unchallenged rule over the colony. However, younger, more vigorous virgin queens often dominate in these queen-to-queen matches.
If multiple queens are present at the same time, worker bees may interfere. cards to force the queen bee to fight to the death. This ceremonial battle was the final duel to determine who would win the colony’s rule. The workers surrounded the queens in a duel, essentially adjudicating the fight. The last queen to stand will prevail while dead rivals are pulled from the nest.
Letting the queens fight directly will remove hesitation and allow the colony to move forward. under new leadership. The sole surviving queen has demonstrated her strength and ability to protect the hive. She will then take over the essential egg-laying functions and provide the colony with a new generation of bees. Queen vs queen matches solve the problem of the crisis when there are too many queens and restore order.
The Queen is Not Related to the Colony
Rarely does a colony reject and kill a new queen introduced by the beekeeper. Bees can tell if it’s genetically different from its pheromones and sounds. They would surround her and kill her if she was an alien. They understand the importance of kinship. Therefore, they do not accept an unidentified foreign queen from another hive.
Killing their queen may seem harsh to the queen. But for the bees, the needs of the colony come first. When the queen is unable to reproduce, the worker bees will replace it without feeling. This allows the hive to survive. The workers’ sole motivation was to protect the continuity of their colony. They do what is necessary for future generations of bees.
Killing the queen is not treason but an instinctive decision of the bee’s mind. The queen’s life is only valuable if it is useful to the colony. When she loses her purpose, her reign must end. In the bee’s alluring kingdom, feelings remain unchanged when the fates of the hive are in balance.
Conclusion
The queen bee has a privileged life. . But they were still subject to the colonial pragmatic law. Worker bees do not hesitate to remove old, sick or less productive queens. By replacing damaged queens with new ones, the hive continues to grow. Bees have no emotional attachment to any particular queen bee. Their goal is purely to maintain their colony. The bees’ unwavering practicality and their willingness to take down human-like kings offer a bright perspective on loyalty and sacrifice.