Bee Queen. Bee queen: photo, breed, description

Uterus is the only female in the family capable of laying eggs. Its main distinguishing feature is the presence of reproductive organs. It is the quality of the queens that determines the performance of the hives, and hence the profitability of the apiary. There are several species of such bees. At the same time, the uterus can be excreted both artificially and naturally.

Role in the family

The main indicator of the quality of the uterus is the number of eggs laid by it. This factor directly depends on whether the bee family is strong or weak, and how much honey it will collect in the summer. Good beasts of the hive are considered to be only those that post at least 2,000 eggs per day. When choosing the uterus in the first place (in addition to the breed) pay attention to its size. It is believed that the more weight this bee has, the better its ovaries are developed. Also, the length of her abdomen influences the performance of the uterus. The more this indicator is, the better.

Unlike the working individuals, the queen bee queen (photo can be seen in the article) for very long - up to 5 years. However, in queens, queens are usually left no more than 2 years. The matter is that because of intensive laying the ovaries of the uterus are very quickly depleted, as a result of which they lose much in productivity.

Difference of the uterus from other bees

Only one bee queen usually lays eggs in a hive. But sometimes there are two or three of them. From workers such bees differ first and foremost with great weight. In this case, the wings of the uterus usually have the same size as that of ordinary bees. Eggs the queen can save both fertilized and unfertilized. In the first case, workers are taken from them, in the second - drones.

The main habitat of such bees is a beehive. Leave his uterus very rarely - only in the spring during mating or when swarming. In the hive the queen is always accompanied by a "retinue" - several working bees. From collection of nectar these individuals are released. Their main task is to feed the uterus with milk and protect it. For food, the queen makes small breaks in laying eggs every half hour.

What are the breeds of bees

The most popular species in the post-Soviet space are bees:

• Central Russian;
• Bacfast;
• Carpathian.

Select a specific breed should be based on the climatic characteristics of this particular area. In addition, it is worth taking into account the characteristics of the variety in terms of honey collection.

Central Russian bee

The queens of this breed are usually chosen by the beekeepers of many regions of Russia. The main advantages of the Central Russian bee are unpretentiousness, resistance to diseases, high productivity and immunity to low temperatures. However, deciding to purchase exactly such queens for the apiary, it is worth bearing in mind that nectar insects of this breed are collected only from flowers of one particular species. The average Russian bee-queen weighs about 210 mg.

Bees Bacchist

The families of this breed are also highly productive. They are bred mainly in Ukraine and Belarus. Uterine bacchist can lay down just a huge number of eggs, and therefore such colonies never lack a working class. It is also advisable to start bees of this breed even when the honey collectors are far from the apiary. Fly baphast workers in search of nectar can be very far. The disadvantage of this breed is basically only the instability to colds. In the northern latitudes and even in the middle zone of Russia successful breeding of a variety of bacfast will be unlikely.

Uterus of this breed can weigh up to 260 mg. Despite the instability to low temperatures, bacon is considered the best variety of bees to date.

Carpathian bees

This breed is bred mainly in Ukraine in the foothills of the Carpathians. The main distinguishing feature of such a variety, as a carpal bee, is the fitness for a short summer and frequent rains. Frosty winters, these families also bear well. The carrot of the Carpathian bee lays eggs even in autumn. And that's why in the winter the families leave rather big. Weight of the uterus of this breed can reach up to 205 mg.

What are the queens

Whatever variety the beekeepers bred, whether it be a carp-bee, Central Russian, a bacfast or any other, the uterus in a hive sooner or later has to be changed. These bees can be excreted both naturally and artificially.

In the first case, the bees themselves build a special motherhood. Egg in the cell at the same time postponed the usual fertilized. In order that later the queen develops out of the larva, the bees feed it exclusively with royal jelly. This product contains special hormones that promote the development of the reproductive organs of the individual.

The natural way can be displayed three main types of queens:

• Fistulous . Such individuals appear in the hive when the old bee queen suddenly dies. The photo, presented below, clearly demonstrates the procedure of construction of queen bees over several already existing honeycombs with larvae.

• A quiet shift . Uteres of this variety appear most often in hives with an old queen, unable to lay more eggs. In this case, working individuals build 2-3 mother liquors. The old queen lays eggs in them, and the bees fill the cells with milk. As a result, new uterus are removed.
• The swarms . Such queens come out in the spring from queen cells, built by bees at the bottom of the frame. A new egg that can lay eggs remains in the hive, and the old one leaves it with the swarm.

In order to quickly distinguish the queen from ordinary working individuals, beekeepers use a special marker for bee queens. With the help of such a tool on the queen of the hive, you can put a bright, not sunburnt mark.

The most qualitative are the swarms and the individuals of the quiet shift. Fusiform can also be quite prolific, but in terms of productivity, these two species are usually slightly inferior.

Whichever way the uterus is taken out by the bees, immediately after the exit, it begins to look for rivals to fight with them. In the end, only one remains in the hive, the strongest queen-queen. Two uterus can coexist peacefully in one family only when taken out by the method of a quiet shift. In this case, the old individual lays eggs at the same time as the young one for a while, and then the bees kill it.

How to deduce

Artificially uterine bacfast, Middle Russian, Carpathian (and any others) are usually derived from this technology:

• From the family, the uterus and all open brood are removed. Only one honeycomb with young larvae and eggs is left in the hive.
• To produce individuals capable of laying eggs, it is pruned from below.
• A few days later, the laid queen cells are cut and laid out on the hives, and the old queen is returned to the family.

Immediately a large number of eggs capable of laying off female specimens can be obtained by transferring them to bowls. This is a rather complex technology, and it is used mainly only in large beekeeping farms. In this case, the larvae are transferred to the prefabricated wax bowls artificially and are fed with milk. The uterus thus obtained is considered the most qualitative.

The Thorny Uterus

Sometimes it happens that the bee-queen of the beehive begins to put only unfertilized eggs in the cells of the honeycomb, from which the drones are subsequently deduced. The reasons for the appearance in the family of such a queen can be different:

• Bad weather, because of which there was no flying around;
• Spoilage of wings;
• Early appearance of the uterus (before the withdrawal of drones).

For all these reasons, the bee-queen of the hive may simply remain unfertilized. Sometimes the old good uterus becomes droned. This is due to the depletion of the ovaries of the individual, the death of spermatozoa or damage to the spermatheca. Trutnevuyu uterus, of course, need to be replaced. Otherwise, the bee family will simply perish.

Uterine pacing

If the old uterus is removed from the hive, after a while the bees will start the conclusion of a new one. However, it is not necessary to wait for the appearance of another queen naturally. It is possible to write out the uterus from a special breeding nursery. In this case, the new queen of the hive will be guaranteed to be of high quality. They place the uterus in the family, usually with the help of a special cell. In it, place the acquired specimen and place it in a hive. In this case, the old uterus is previously removed. The bees who feel orphanhood usually easily accept a new queen.