Glossary
The complex blend of chemical compounds produced by the queen bee's mandibular glands, commonly called Queen Mandibular Pheromone (QMP). This pheromone is the primary chemical signal that maintains colony cohesion, suppresses worker reproduction, and regulates numerous colony-level behaviors.
QMP contains five primary compounds that work synergistically. The pheromone is spread through the colony by contact: attendant worker bees (the queen's retinue) lick QMP from the queen's body and distribute it to other workers through food sharing (trophallaxis) and body contact.
QMP effects: suppresses worker ovary development (prevents laying workers), inhibits queen cell construction (prevents queen replacement), attracts workers to form a retinue around the queen, stimulates foraging activity, and during swarming, attracts the swarm to cluster around the queen.
In large or aging colonies, QMP may not distribute adequately to all workers. Workers at the colony's periphery may not receive sufficient pheromone, triggering supersedure (queen replacement) or swarming behavior.
When a queen dies or is removed, the absence of QMP is detected by workers within hours. Workers begin emergency queen cell construction from young larvae within 24 hours. Without a queen or developing queen cells, workers may begin laying unfertilized eggs (laying worker situation), one of the most difficult management problems in beekeeping.
Workers detect the absence of QMP within 1-4 hours of queen loss. Behavioral changes (increased agitation, roaring sound) appear within hours. Emergency queen cell construction begins within 12-24 hours as workers select young larvae to raise as replacement queens.
Synthetic QMP (marketed as Pseudo Queen) and natural QMP extracts are available. They can temporarily calm queenless colonies, suppress laying workers, and attract swarms. However, synthetic pheromone is not a long-term substitute for a living queen.
Young, well-mated, healthy queens produce stronger QMP than older, failing, or poorly mated queens. Workers respond to queen quality partly through pheromone strength. This is one mechanism by which colonies assess and potentially supersede declining queens.
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