The queen bee plays a huge role in the bee colony. It can be said that she is the heart of the bee colony, laying eggs from which new bees emerge. And she herself also emerged from one such egg. In our article, we will examine how the queen bee became the queen and what influenced this.
Special royal diet
Let’s start the story with how a young queen bee receives sperm from drones during her mating flight. She stores this sperm for her entire life and uses it to fertilize eggs.
This means that the queen can lay two types of eggs.
The first type is fertilized eggs, from which worker bees and, under certain conditions, the queen bee herself emerge. Fertilized eggs carry the genetic material of the queen herself and the drones (male bees).
The second type is unfertilized eggs. Only male bees (drones) emerge from them. Such eggs contain only the genetic material of the queen herself.
The fate of the larva
A larva emerges from the laid fertilized egg. This larva is identical for both worker bees and queen bees. Whether it will become a worker bee or a queen bee depends on its future nutrition. This is decided by the worker bees, who bear full responsibility at this stage.
The diet of a worker bee:
The diet of a worker bee consists of “bee bread”, a mixture of pollen and honey, and a small amount of royal jelly during the first few days. This nutrition is sufficient to raise a worker bee that will be responsible for all the work in the bee colony, from cleaning the hive to feeding the larvae.
The queen bee diet:
Worker bees feed the larva of the future queen bee with royal jelly. This substance is produced by bees from the hypopharyngeal glands of young worker bees. Royal jelly is a complex mixture of water, sugars, proteins, fatty acids, and vitamins, and it is the key ingredient that influences the formation of the queen bee.
The importance of royal jelly for the development of the queen bee
It is royal jelly that has properties that activate genetic changes in larvae. Its main component is a protein called royalactin.
Royal jelly has an effect on:
- Accelerated growth: The larva begins to grow rapidly compared to a worker bee larva. The queen bee emerges on the 16th day, while a worker bee emerges on the 21st day.
- Reproductive development: Stimulates the development of the reproductive system, including large ovaries and a spermatheca. Worker bees, in contrast, have underdeveloped ovaries and are generally sterile.
- Morphological changes: The queen bee’s body shape and size are distinctly different from a worker bee. She has a longer, more streamlined abdomen for laying eggs, a different sting (barbless, allowing her to sting multiple times), and she lacks the pollen baskets found on worker bees’ legs.
The Royal Cell
The queen cell in which the future queen is raised is significantly larger than the cell of a worker bee. Bees extend it to make room for the queen. This also allows them to store more royal jelly.
Survival
The queen bee does not simply grow up and appear in her cell. She must also survive. As soon as the first queen bee emerges, she searches for other queens that have not yet emerged in order to kill them. If several queens emerge at the same time, they fight each other, and the strongest survives.
After a while, the surviving queen goes on a mating flight, during which she mates with drones. This flight is also dangerous, as she may be eaten by birds or hornets. Only a fertilized queen who returns is able to lay eggs and become the queen of the bee colony.
The complete development cycle of a queen bee lasts 16 days and is divided into several key stages
1. Egg (3 days): After the fertilized egg is laid in the queen cell, its development begins. Within three days, the egg develops into a larva. The temperature inside the queen cell is maintained by the bees at an optimal level (approximately 35°C) for rapid and proper development.
2. Larva (3 days): The hatched larva actively feeds on royal jelly. This is the period of most intensive growth. The larva increases in size dozens of times. Worker bees provide constant care and feeding. On the 5th-6th day, the larva is sealed in the queen cell.
3. Pre-pupa (3 days): During this period, the larva cleanses its intestines of food residues, after which it begins to weave a cocoon around itself. This stage is important for protection against infections and for the formation of the pupa.
4. Pupa (7 days): Inside the cocoon, the larva undergoes metamorphosis, turning into an imago—an adult insect. This stage is accompanied by a complete transformation of tissues and organs. Bees maintain a certain microclimate in the queen cell, providing the necessary conditions for the proper development of the pupa.
5. Emergence of the queen: On the 16th day, the young queen chews through the cap of the queen cell and emerges. At first, her movements are clumsy and her body is slightly swollen, but she quickly regains her mobility and slenderness.
| Egg | Larva | Pre-pupa | Pupa | Emergence | |
| Duration | 3 days | 3 days | 3 days | 7 days | Day 16 |
| Days (Total) | 1-3 | 4-6 | 7-9 | 10-16 | 16 |
| Key Characteristics | Fertilized egg develops into larva | Intensive growth period – larva increases size dozens of times | Larva cleanses intestines and begins weaving cocoon | Complete metamorphosis – transformation into adult queen | Young queen chews through cell cap and emerges |
Conclusion
The emergence of the queen bee is a process controlled by worker bees. By providing the larva with special nutrition consisting of royal jelly, they raise their queen. The queen herself must also prove her viability by passing several dangerous tests and defeating her competitors. This is how the process works in nature, and this is how the queen bee comes into being.
