How does a bee become queen?

The honeybees , belonging insects to the genus Apis , they are an eusocial species, that is, they belong to the highest level of social organization of all animals.In the hives, inhabited by swarms , they live together castes of bees: the queen, worker bees (females) and drones (males).

But, how does a bee become queen? In this article of Animals and Pets Online we will solve this and many other doubts about the queen bee, discovering, for example, how to differentiate it from the others and how the fight between the queens occurs.We explain everything to you, keep reading!

The birth of the queen bee

Before answering this question, it is essential to know the two different situations that can generate the need for a new queen : the death of the queen bee (or master bee) or the creation of a new swarm for lack of space in the current one, which will go in search of a new hive.

We denominate swarm to a group of bees, usually on the move.Sometimes, a large group of bees leaves the colony with a queen to settle in a new hive, forming swarms of up to 20 meters.

Before the event, the hive is responsible for raising a new queen , since most species of bees would not survive without her.This phenomenon usually appears when the hive becomes too small to house all its individuals, usually in late spring and throughout the summer, when swarm activity reaches its peak.Now that you know the causes of e raising a new queen, we will discover how a bee becomes queen...

Because worker bees do not live long and the survival of a hive depends directly on the queen, When the workers suspect that they will need a new one soon, they select from 3 to 5 larvae that they will place in the so-called "real cells" , some special, large-sized cells.

These larvae will be fed only with royal jelly , which implies:

Large size , with a protruding abdomen.
A longevity markedly superior to that of other members of the same hive, standing between 3 and 5 years, unlike the workers, who usually live a maximum of 5 weeks.
The ability to lay up to 2,000 eggs a day .
Absence of the suction organ.
Different shades, arriving to reach a bronze color ado.

The fight of the queen bees

Once the larvae have been selected, the workers will take care of them scrupulously until they are born.That is when the queen bee fight takes place, which is basically how a bee becomes queen .

In this quest for queen bees there can only be one left: the strongest .It is important that the queen who survives is the most powerful, because she is the one who will transmit her genetic material at more than 2,000 larvae daily for 3 or 5 years.Once the fight to the death is over, the queen bee prepares to be fertilized by the fastest males .Thanks to this method , the hive will enjoy the birth of strong and fast specimens.

How does the queen bee reproduce?

As we have told you, the males chase the female during the "bridal flight" trying to reproduce with her, however, only the fastest males will fertilize her.full of sperm, the queen bee returns to the hive to rest for a few days, before starting with the laying of eggs that will help the growth of the hive.

Where do the bees lay eggs?

The queen, in addition to being the only bee in the colony capable of breeding and laying eggs, has the control to choose if her eggs produce males or females.But, how does it? To give birth to a female bee, the queen will deposit in a cell a fertilized egg by a sperm and, to give birth to a male, you only have to deposit an unfertilized egg.

How to identify the queen bee?

But how is the queen bee? There are some morphological details that can help us know how to recognize a queen bee :

Among all the bees, the queen is usually the largest , except for some species.
Looking at the body, we can observe in the queen a larger and more robust abdomen .
The sting of the queen bee is not serrated, which allows it to sting at will without dying.On the contrary, worker bees have a serrated sting that causes them to remain in the body of their target, inevitably causing their own death.
The extremities of the queen bee, especially the later ones, are usually remarkably large.
When traveling through the hive, the other bees usually let it pass.

Royal jelly and its importance in the queen bee

A group of workers, known as "nursemaids" are primarily responsible for larvae.They secrete royal jelly through their glandular cephalic system, located in their head.it is a whitish substance , with pearly reflections, gelatinous texture, warm lay.All larvae receive royal jelly in its development stage, but the queen is the only one that receives it completely pure, without water or pollen, throughout its life.

Studies have shown that royal jelly has the ability to modify the DNA of bees that feed on it [1] and it is by this reason that the queen bee differs from the workers.For all this, it seems important to point out that royal jelly is another factor that explains how a bee becomes queen, right?

Discover also in Animals and Pets Online what would happen if there were no bees.They are essential for the ecosystem!

If you want to read more articles similar to How does a bee become queen? , do you We recommend that you enter our Curiosities section of the animal world.

References

S.Sua, S.Albertb, S.Chena and B.Zhonga; Molecular cloning and analysis of four cDNAs from the heads of Apis cerana cerana nurse honeybees coding for major royal jelly proteins , Apidologie Volume 36, Number 3, July-September 2005, 389-401 07 July 2005.Available at: https://www.apidologie.org/articles/apido/abs/2005/03/M4084/M4084.html

Bibliography

Â «The blog of Reines d'Abeilles-Vie mort des Reines d'abeillesÂ», Achat de reines d'abeilles, â € Ž 25 novembre 2017
"Des abeilles et des hommes" documentaire suisse.

Comments

Common blackbird feeding - Care of pigeons and rescued adults

The Blackbirds ( Turdus merula ) are intelligent and affectionate animals that must always live in freedom, in their natural habitat.But, sometimes, we must keep them in captivity.It would be the case of the offspring that we can find outside their nest and that They do not know how to assert themselves because they cannot yet feed themselves, but they may also need help from adults who have an injury or illness. In this Animals and Pets Online article we are going to focus on The common blackbird feeding as a fundamental part of its recovery before releasing it.Do you have a blackbird in captivity rescued? Don't you know which food is most suitable for blackbirds? Then this article interests you, keep reading! Characteristics of the common blackbird The blackbird is a common bird in Europe.It presents sexual dimorphism , which means that the female and the male are different with the naked eye.Yes, the male is totally black and yellow-orange beak and eye ring, while t...

Malt for cats - Different uses and how often to offer it

Cats are especially clean animals that spend hours grooming.lick ingest a lot of hair.If you live with a cat, you've sure seen it seen coughing and even vomiting hairballs. That's when some people turn to cat malt , a very useful product of natural origin that improves digestion and intestinal transit of our cat. Discover in Animals and Pets Online everything related to malt for cats, including the necessary doses, at what age It should be offered or information about vomiting.All the benefits of this product below: What is malt? Cat malt is a paste of color similar to honey and denser texture .It consists of vegetable oils and fats, malt extract, fiber, dairy products and yeast mainly.It also often contains dyes, preservatives and vitamins. There are numerous brands in the market with different formats.The most frequent is in the form of a tube of toothpaste.The composition varies slightly according to the brand but the basis is malt extract.Some cats show a prefe...

Prague mouse dog: features

The Prague mouse is also known as buzzard from Prague or Pražský krysařik and is originally from the Czech Republic.It is a toy dog or mini dog and it is that in its adult stage it does not usually exceed 3.5 kilograms in weight.It is really small.In this tab Race of Animal Expert we will share with you all the information related to the Prague mouse either about its origin, the characteristics, the character it has or the care it needs. We will also talk about their education, something very important if there are children at home, but also essential to prevent them from barking a lot or behaving in a negative way inside the home.If you are thinking of adopting a Prague mouse do not hesitate to continue reading to discover the history that precedes it and curiosities about it. Origin of the Prague mouse The Prague mouse begins its history in the Middle Ages, in the royal palaces of central Europe, more specifically in Bohemia (Czech Republic) where it was a highly prized ...

The smartest rodents

There are more than 2800 different rodent species that populate all parts of the planet, except in both poles.Son species that are not in danger of extinction, quite the opposite, and on many occasions some species are considered a pest. If survival is considered a parametroutile to measure animal intelligence, no doubt Among the rodents are some species of remarkable intelligence. In this article of Animals and Pets Online we will show you some rodents possessing a very considerable intelligence.Continue reading the most intelligent rodents : The common rat The common rat, or brown rat, is perhaps the representative of mammals whose survival is more plausible in any circumstance.It is much stronger, larger and more aggressive than its congenre the black rat, or country rat. The common rat is native to China, and from there it has managed to expand throughout the world, especially in the sewerage of all cities and towns.Various tests have been carried out with them, including m...

My lovebird has diarrhea - Causes and treatment

Lovebird has become one of the most frequently birds they find in our homes.Their color, their beauty, and that nickname of "inseparable" that we like so much, makes them as appreciated as the canaries were once. But the arrival of any bird, exotic or not , puts us in front of new situations that sometimes we are not accustomed to face.Animals and Pets Online will try to help distinguish pathological situations from those that are not, and to handle us in the event that our lovebird has diarrhea , In the following article we explain the possible causes that cause it . It is not always diarrhea, even if it seems We may notice that there are more liquid stools than usual in our lovebird on the floor of the cage and identify it as diarrhea, even if it is not. Evacuations Sewers in birds are made up of a greenish part (they can vary in color if they take feed, they are real feces), a white part (urates, mineral salts), and a liquid part (urine).Everything goes out...

12 invasive species in Argentina and its consequences

According to the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development e , through the National Information System on Invasive Exotic Species, more than 650 invasive species were detected in Argentina .Many of these species were introduced by man, with the intention of obtaining economic benefits, "increase" the local level of sport hunting, or combat pests that were damaging agriculture or livestock. Although the idea of greater diversity in nature may seem interesting, the introduction of exotic animals and plants, Without a previous study of its environmental impact, it usually threatens the survival of the native fauna and flora of the country .In this new article of Animals and Pets Online, we present the main 12 invasive alien species in Argentina and its consequence s for the country's ecosystem. 1.Pinto starling (Sturnus vulgaris) The introduction of these birds is very recent in Argentina, but it already generates great concern for its impact on fauna...

Animals with exoskeleton - Names and examples

The body of the largest vertebrate animals is not a mystery to most of people: it is known that it has a skeleton, internal vital organs (heart, brain, etc.), a dermis of variable and organ characteristics through which the five senses are manifested, among other characteristics. However, have you wondered what the invertebrate morphology is like? Then you need to know all about the animals with exoskeleton, names and examples. Don't miss this Animals and Pets Online article! What is the exoskeleton? The exoskeleton is an external structure that covers the body of various animals, including arthropods.It is characterized by being resistant but flexible .This structure It consists of different substances depending on the subfile to which the animal belongs: chitin for insects and fungi, calcium in mollusks and corals or silica in diatoms among other components. In turn, the exoskeleton is formed by three structures : Cuticle : non-cellular layer secreted by the hyp...

Differences between a Persian cat and an angora

Although both breeds are known and popular, for some lovers of cats the differences between a Persian cat and an angora are not entirely clear, perhaps because they both have a spectacular long coat, but the differences between both races are remarkable and, if we want to adopt any of these cats, it is important that we have them in order for our new cat to adapt as well as possible to our home. This is why in this article of Animals and Pets Online we will expose the differences between a Persian cat and an angora .If you intend to adopt any of these cats, this article of Persian cat vs Angora is essential! Physical differences between Persian and Angora cats We begin this review of the differences between a Persian cat and an angora for the most obvious, that is, those that refer to physical aspects.These are going to be the following: The nose: it is, perhaps, the most important and significant, in addition, at first glance it will allow us to differentiate a Persian cat a...

Bears

Grizzly Bear The grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) one of the emblematic animals of the United States, however, this has not allowed him to get rid of being one of the most endangered animals of the American continent.Grizzly bears are close relatives of the brown bears of the continent Eurasian, but the distance... Eyeglass bear The spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus) is also known as Andean bear, frontal bear, South American bear, jukumari and ucumari.According to IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature), between 2,500 and 10,000 copies of bears are released.glasses, for this and for the continuous... Bear kodiak The Kodiak bear (Ursus arctos middendorffi), also known as the Alaskan giant bear, is a subspecies of brown bear native to the island of Kodiak and other coastal towns in southern Alaska.These mammals highlight their immense size and remarkable robustness, being one of terrestrial mammals more... Brown bear The brown bear (Ursus arctos) is a usu...

EVERYTHING about PETERBALD CAT

Peterbald cats are part of the so-called hairless cats , because they do not have fur, unlike most feline breeds.Specifically it is an "oriental version" of the famous sphynx cats, obtained from crossing with other feline breeds.In addition to their appearance, these cats stand out for their affectionate and affectionate character, so if you are a person with enough time, peterbald can be your best companion. Do you want to know everything about peterbald cats and their recent origin? From ExpertAnimal we will tell you all about these curious felines without hair, we will talk about the characteristics of peterbal, care and much more. Origin of the peterbald cat Peterbald cats are originating in Russia , where in the 90s eastern shorthair cats with Siamese cats and a certain variety of sphynx cats were crossed, as the intentions of the breeder who made these crosses was to obtain a cat like the sphynx but in an oriental style. It was not long until in 1994 the cr...

Animals and Pets Online

Search This Blog