Queen Bee Breeding: From Drones to Finishers

Queen bee breeding is a meticulous process that requires precise timing and careful planning. The success of raising high-quality queens depends on the synchronization of drone maturity, the establishment of nurse colonies, and ensuring the right genetic lineage. This guide explores the key steps in queen bee breeding, highlighting the essential stages and optimal conditions for successful rearing.

The Timing of Queen Rearing

Queen breeding can only begin when capped drone brood is present in the colony. On this day, a queen cell can be introduced into a nurse colony. The development cycle of drones is crucial for timing the introduction of queen cells.

Drone Development Cycle

• After their first orientation flight, drones begin to emerge en masse after 21 days. At this point, drone combs should be added to the hive (for example, if the first flight occurs on April 1, drone combs should be introduced on April 22).
• Drones hatch 24 days after being laid and take another 14 days to mature, completing their 38-day development cycle.
• In contrast, queens hatch after 16 days and mature in 10 days, making their total development cycle 27 days.
• A queen cell should be introduced into the nurse colony when drone brood reaches 11 days of age, which coincides with the capping of drone brood (calculated as 38 days - 27 days = 11 days).

For example, if the season starts on April 1, drone combs are added on April 22, drone brood is capped, and a queen cell is given to the nurse colony on May 3. The queen and drones will mature by May 31, ensuring the optimal conditions for mating.

Selecting the Breeding Queen

The traits of the colony are transmitted through the queen’s lineage via royal jelly. Simply taking eggs from a high-quality queen is not enough; the eggs must also be reared by bees from the same genetic background. To ensure superior queen quality, both the starter colony and the nurse colony should originate from the same mother line.

To enhance egg-laying potential and ensure strong offspring, the breeder queen should be confined for a week to regulate egg-laying. This can be achieved by transferring her to a newly formed hive with honey and 2-3 frames of open brood, or by placing her in an isolator.

The Role of the Starter Colony

A starter colony is a hive with a high population of young bees and all capped brood. Since the colony has no choice, it will eagerly accept and nurture young larvae placed in queen cells. In the nurse colony, open brood frames are placed next to the introduced queen cells to attract young nurse bees to feed the larvae.

Important considerations:

• Moving larvae from the starter colony to the nurse colony should only be done in the first half of summer when the swarming season is still active.
• If done in the second half of summer, the nurse colony may reject and discard the larvae, raising only its own brood.

Establishing a Finisher Colony

Finisher colonies should be created before the nectar flow begins, as robbing behavior increases later in the season.

The process involves:

1. Waiting for 5 days after establishing the queenless nurse colony, during which any unwanted queen cells are destroyed.
2. After 5 days, the nurse bees will have a sufficient supply of royal jelly to properly feed the introduced queen cells, leading to higher-quality queens.
3. After three days, the queen cells can either be distributed or left in the colony.

Inside the finisher colony, there must be bee bread and honey to ensure proper nourishment. Open brood frames should be placed near the queen cells, as this will attract nurse bees. If nectar flow is strong, excess honey may flood the queen-rearing area, so wax foundations are placed above the queen-rearing chamber to create additional space.

Choosing the Right Finisher Colony

• Colonies with 2-3-year-old queens are preferred for finisher colonies, as older queens are more likely to swarm than younger ones.
• A strong colony covering an entire hive body should be selected. If necessary, the colony can be reinforced a week before with additional brood frames from other hives.
• Positioning of brood. Capped brood frames are placed at the hive’s edges, followed by pollen and honey frames, then open brood frames, and finally the queen cells.

Management Strategy

Every six days, open brood begins to be capped. At this stage, capped brood is replaced with fresh open brood from other hives to maintain a steady supply of young nurse bees.

• A rotation system is used: capped brood frames from the rear of the hive are moved to a separate hive body, while fresh open brood frames are placed next to the queen cells.
• This cycle is repeated every six days to ensure a continuous supply of nurse bees.

The Importance of a Drone-Producing Colony

A drone-producing colony (or father colony) serves as a genetic pool for drone stock, passing down the best colony traits.

Key points:

• Drone combs should be added only after the first worker bee generation emerges, as drone larvae require a substantial amount of royal jelly.
• Introducing drone combs too early can overwhelm the colony and lead to lower-quality drones.
• The ideal father colony is a strong, proven hive that has survived 2-3 summers, allowing its best traits to be observed over time.

Maintaining Drones Throughout the Season

In natural conditions, colonies expel drones when nectar flow ceases, even if food is abundant. This phenomenon occurs in spring, summer, and fall and can result in many unmated queens if drones are expelled prematurely.

To maintain drone availability for extended queen breeding:

• Drone brood should be transferred to queenless colonies before it is capped.
• By late July, when drones are typically eliminated in nature, maintaining a selected drone population allows for late-season queen mating with optimal genetics.
• Only 10% of all drones in a colony will actually mate with queens, so maintaining a stable drone population is essential for breeding success.

Conclusion

Raising high-quality queen bees requires precise planning and careful coordination of drone and queen development. By synchronizing the maturity of drones, properly preparing nurse colonies, and ensuring strong genetic lines, beekeepers can consistently produce superior queens. A well-managed queen breeding program not only strengthens bee colonies but also contributes to overall hive productivity and resilience.