In the highly organized world of the honey bee colony, the queen bee is the most vital individual. She is the only honey bee capable of reproduction and is responsible for producing the tens of thousands of workers needed to sustain the hive. Because the queen’s health and genetics directly determine the success, temperament and productivity of the entire colony, the selection of a new leader is a critical event.

The fate of a honey bee becoming a queen is sealed early in life, but the decision of which larva becomes the next ruler is made by the worker bees. The quality of 100% pure, raw & unfiltered honey depends entirely on having a strong queen that produces a thriving colony.

The Queen’s Chemical Reign
The queen’s role extends far beyond laying eggs; she maintains the entire social structure of the hive through chemical communication using pheromones.

• Pheromone function: These chemical signals, produced primarily by the queen’s mandibular gland, are crucial for colony regulation. They serve to:
  • Suppress worker reproduction: The pheromones pharmacologically suppress the development of ovaries in worker bees, ensuring they remain non-reproductive.
  • Maintain cohesion: The pheromones act as a powerful attractant and signal, helping to unify the colony and elicit the retinue behavior (worker bees surrounding and tending to the queen).
  • Control swarming: They help suppress queen cell construction, which is a precursor to swarming.
• Signaling failure: Worker bees are acutely aware of this chemical signal. If the colony’s original queen dies or her pheromone production drops (indicating a failing queen), the worker bees immediately notice the lack of pheromones, triggering them to replace that queen with a new one.

How a Bee Becomes a Queen

Every female honey bee starts life with the same genetic potential, but the queen is differentiated from a worker bee through a powerful combination of genetics and diet:

• Genetics: Both queens and worker bees develop from fertilized eggs. Drones (males) develop from unfertilized eggs.
• Nutrition: The difference between a queen and a worker bee is purely nutritional. A larva destined to become a queen is fed a lavish, exclusive diet of royal jelly throughout its entire larval development, while a worker bee larva is switched to a diet of pollen and honey after the first few days. This rich diet triggers the physiological changes that result in a large, fertile queen.

When the colony decides it needs a new queen (either due to supersedure – replacing a failing queen – or swarming – colony fission), the worker bees must select the best available candidates. Recent research suggests that when workers screen candidates from larvae of different ages, they instinctively prioritize the one-day old larvae as the highest quality option to ensure the new queen develops properly and quickly.

This strategic management of the hive’s most important individual ensures the colony is strong enough to thrive. Our experienced beekeepers at Nate’s Hives serve the colony, monitoring the health of the queen and the whole hive. With us by their side and through a sophisticated system of chemical signals, the hive follows the queen’s lead – all working together to create the sweetest, highest quality for Nate’s Honey.