Maiden Queen

[mystil]

Hello Chaps
Quite afew questions. Please be gentle.

1. Does anyone have a pictures of a maiden queen? Our queen emerged very recently and is quite large. Is this a sign she has had her maiden flight?

2. What is the best method of catching the queen for marking? A plunger or the press in cage (with spikes) for a beginner?

Should we us a pen or a nail poilsh brush to paint HM (thornes sell them both)?

Cheers

 

[huntsman666]

If using a pen, make sure the 'point' is not stuck as you'll damage her thorax if it is.

 

[kazmcc]

Hello Chaps
Quite afew questions. Please be gentle.

1. Does anyone have a pictures of a maiden queen? Our queen emerged very recently and is quite large. Is this a sign she has had her maiden flight?

2. What is the best method of catching the queen for marking? A plunger or the press in cage (with spikes) for a beginner?

Should we us a pen or a nail poilsh brush to paint HM (Th**nes sell them both)?

Cheers

I have some pictures of our queen the day she emerged, although they are not very clear, I will try and find them. Hang on.

 

[kazmcc]

Hope these help. I thought she looked a bit skinny, but I was assured she was fine, and would fatten a bit as she was fed and mated

 

[kazmcc]

The second one didn't upload for somereason, here it is.

 

[plumberman]

I would not be marking a virgin queen if I were you (if that is what you are intending to do!)

 

[warts]

Hi Kaz
Nice picture. Strangely (or not when I think about it) I both love and get a lot from looking at the pictures on this site. There have been some really good ones in terms of sharpness / interesting content etc.

 

[kazmcc]

Thanks warts. I love the pictures too. I didn't take these, one of the teachers did, mine are bobbins lol. There have been some seriously good ones hasn't there

 

[mystil]

Thanks for the pictures. Brilllaint, not that bad! Lol.

No we are not planning to mark her straight away as got to wait until settled and laying.

We are going to wait 2 weeks to inspect again to see if she is laying and then decide what to do. We are just buying supplies to practice with drones at the moment (delivery could be a while).

Wanted to see a picture to see if maiden queen is smaller than a mated queen, and I think the answer is it makes no difference.

The maiden queen we saw today was quite big and I thought she may have been mated (due to size) but now I think she may not have been. Her queen cell she emerged from was still standing so she may have emerged in the last few days.

 

[Poly Hive]

Size is no guide to anything.

I have seen massive useless queens, and tiny skinny queens heading massive colonies.

PH

 

[Swarm]

Queens vary in size. I had a drawn virgin last year that was a bit of a monster. This year I have a shorter ... erm .. chunkier one (now laying) in a nuc.
Whether size is any guide to productivity I wouldn't care to guess. I've had excellent queens that were both large and small, so the answer is probably not.

I mark mine with pen and the crown. Only thing I'd say is follow any 'charging' instructions carefully and once the pen is working, do a test dab on nearby structure to make sure it flows properly.

 

[mystil]

Cheers everyone for the advice. Will follow it all to the letter.

Cannot wait to see how the hives are doing next time.

Have bought a Press down with spikes queen catcher and also two of the pens (one yellow and one white).

Luckily we have enough drones to practice on!

 

[Headnavigator]

2. What is the best method of catching the queen for marking? A plunger or the press in cage (with spikes) for a beginner?

Should we us a pen or a nail poilsh brush to paint HM (Th**nes sell them both)?

Cheers

Tube and foam plunger every time, foam won't do her much harm if you're a bit clumsy, and to Mark her dob a bit of paint/ink/whatever onto a matchstick and then onto HM, will save a drip drowning her in the stuff.

 

[Bees Plus]

Spiked cage, dropper, then wait for the paint to dry....

I tend to wait until the new queen is laying, as the paint might put off the boys

 

[rae]

Have bought a Press down with spikes queen catcher and also two of the pens (one yellow and one white).

I say this every time I see discussion on the pens....

Always test the pen before marking for real. If the pen has got warm and pressurised, there will be a massive flow of paint that drowns the queen.

(nothing wrong with the pens otherwise, we use them, dirt cheap for a pack of 7 colours from Amazon)

 

[mystil]

Cheers. All bought now (just put an order in). Will do as you say and make sure flow of pen is small before going anywhere near her when she is laying.

 

[Swarm]

...And press gently with the crown. Little by little until she is still, then ease off gently to allow her to move before carefully releasing her. Good luck.

 

[richardbees]

Good job it's a "white" year as Sainsburys is selling Tippex liquid for £1.40

- nothing better when using a marking cage

 

[drstitson]

the pens are cheaper on amazon/ebay.

kaz - perhaps if you let people see the pictures of your bobbins via pay per view you could cover your beekeeping needs!!!! (or did i misunderstand - i'll get me coat!!

 

[richardbees]

drstitson

that is so inappropriate - I've booked a cab for you, it'll be waiting outside in 15 mins!