The queen takes her army to found a new hive: the most interesting time in the life of bees (8 photos)

In the Ottoman Empire, for several centuries, there was an eerie law: whoever becomes the Sultan must kill his brothers. What, chills? But the bees would approve. It is with murder that the new life of the swarm begins.





Revolutionary Committee of the Bee Union.

Summer. Apiary. Hive. Look inside and see how she, the future queen, grows among thousands of hundreds. What distinguishes her from the larvae of worker bees is her own apartment: in addition to the place in the hexagonal cell, the future ruler has a special house - the queen cell. It was previously created by caring subjects - it was here that the current ruler laid the eggs from which her heir will emerge. There are several such queen cells. But only one will become the future queen.



The formed queen cell differs from other honeycombs in that it resembles an almond or peach pit.

In order for the princess to continue the dynasty, the workers intensively feed her with royal jelly. In the first stages of development, all larvae receive it, but only the queens receive it from the beginning to the end of their growth. In 16-17 days, the princess will grow up, get out of the queen cell and... begin her reign with bloodshed - she will kill her sisters who did not have time to appear.





The larvae are clearly unhappy with the impudent photographer who is spying on them.

There can only be one queen in a hive. The old mother knows this too. Therefore, the matron leaves all her acquired property as an inheritance to her daughter when leaving the hive. The process of dividing a bee colony is called swarming. It occurs in late May-early June. And it doesn’t always turn out to be a pleasant surprise for beekeepers.



The queen is dead. Long live the new queen!

What do the owners of the bee farm not do to prevent the next queen from whistling out of the palace with a whole bunch of courtiers! And one wing of the queen is cut off, and the exit from the hive is narrowed so much that the portly queen simply cannot get out of there... If you miss the moment, sometimes you have to run around and bring back the whole swarm by the hook. All measures are good so as not to weaken the family.



Nothing unusual: just people standing under the canopy of a bus stop during a rainstorm.

But sometimes swarming is part of the beekeeper’s plans. And what happens in this case? First, the swarm hangs out in a secluded place not far from its native hive. At this time, it looks especially menacing: a ball of bees can settle anywhere: on a tree, your roof or under a bicycle seat!



Why are you driving around like you've been stung in the ass? Aah, I see...

Scout bees get down to business. They are looking for a new home. Moreover, no more than three days are allotted for this - this is the period for which the reserves of honey in the crops of insects are enough. But no matter how quickly the bees rush to find a place for the hive, they will not settle anywhere. Each scout offers her own option, but the swarm will only move to the shelter that the majority approves. No “we thought about it, and I decided.” Bees has a black belt in team building.



It’s scary to imagine what fierce disputes are going on within such a large team. Considering that everyone has a sharpener with them!

The place chosen for the hive must accommodate the entire swarm, and this is a volume of at least 15 liters. Moreover, the entrance should be small. And you also need a sufficient amount of sunlight there. Hollows are perfect for such purposes, which is why many beekeepers still prefer “deck” hives that resemble natural dwellings.



The log looks like a large hollow - the most common habitat for bees in nature.

If at least 80% of the bees “voted” for the new house, the swarm moves. You can congratulate the princess on her housewarming! Workers stock up on honey and make layers of wax to store it. And the queen’s task is to provide the hive with residents. To do this, she makes a ceremonial flight, setting up a date with a whole company of drone suitors. A “recharged” queen is capable of laying up to 2 thousand eggs per day, which she does diligently.