Glossary
A colony that has lost its queen through death, failed mating, or swarming without successful queen replacement. Queenless colonies exhibit distinct behavioral changes and will eventually die if a new queen is not introduced or raised from existing young larvae.
A queenless colony behaves differently from a queenright one. The hum inside the hive changes pitch, becoming more agitated and higher-pitched, a quality experienced beekeepers call a "queenless roar." Workers become restless and disorganized. Foraging activity decreases. The colony becomes more defensive because the calming effect of queen pheromone is absent.
The definitive sign is the absence of eggs. If you cannot find eggs (tiny white specks standing upright in cell bottoms) during an inspection, the queen has been missing for at least 3 days. If you cannot find young larvae either, she has been gone for at least 6 days. Finding queen cells on the face of frames (emergency cells) confirms the bees are trying to raise a replacement from existing larvae.
When a colony detects that the queen is gone, workers can attempt to raise a new queen from any larva that is young enough (less than 3 days old). They select several larvae, tear down the surrounding cells to create space, and begin feeding the chosen larvae a diet of pure royal jelly. Emergency queen cells are built quickly and appear as rough, peanut-shaped protrusions on the face of the comb, wherever suitable-age larvae happened to be when the queen was lost.
The success rate depends on whether young enough larvae are available, the overall health and population of the colony, and whether the resulting virgin queen can mate successfully. If no suitable larvae exist when the queen is lost, the colony cannot raise a replacement on its own.
When we identify a queenless colony, the simplest fix is introducing a new mated queen in a queen cage. The cage's candy plug provides a 2 to 3 day slow-release period during which the queenless workers acclimate to the new queen's pheromones. Alternatively, we can donate a frame of fresh eggs and young larvae from a strong colony, giving the queenless bees the raw material to raise their own replacement. This takes longer (about 3 weeks from egg to mated queen) but allows the bees to select the best candidates.
Look for the absence of eggs and young larvae during inspection. Other signs include an agitated hive sound, decreased foraging, increased defensiveness, and the presence of emergency queen cells on the face of the comb. If the colony has been queenless for several weeks, you may see a laying worker (multiple eggs per cell).
Without a queen, no new workers are produced. The existing population ages and dies over 4 to 6 weeks. If the colony fails to raise a replacement queen, workers eventually begin laying unfertilized eggs (only drones hatch). The colony dwindles and dies.
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