Queen cells at different stages

[Jack Straw]

During the last week of June one of my colonies swarmed.
As there was no eggs/brood 4 weeks later I moved a frame with BIAS including 1 day old eggs, in from another colony
14 days later and I have the following
No brood/eggs anywhere in the colony. No sign of laying worker, i.e. no cells with multiple eggs or eggs laid on side of cell
several empty queen cups
1 queen cup/cell half drawn with one up standing egg
1 queen cell fully drawn with small larvae in milky white substance
1 sealed queen cell
The remainder of the introduced frame is all sealed brood

I would welcome comments as to what is going on!

Many thanks

 

[Hawklord]

Everything on the frame of BIAS that you put in 14 days ago should be capped. So what could have laid an egg that would be viable for the workers to turn into a queen cell?

 

[Hivemaker.]

I would welcome comments as to what is going on!

Possibly laying workers at cross over point.

 

[masterBK]

Eggs do not all automatically hatch immediately after the classic 3 days. I have found the occasional egg that has not hatched after even longer periods of time than 14 days (probably egg not viable ie won't ever hatch) and also eggs that hatch after several days delay. They tend to be in cooler areas of the hive or the colony has become depleted of workers so not all brood can be covered

 

[TryingToLetThemBee]

Everything on the frame of BIAS that you put in 14 days ago should be capped. So what could have laid an egg that would be viable for the workers to turn into a queen cell?

The Q left by the original swarm. Swarmy bunch if they're at it again but maybe the influx confused them. My swarmiest strain went the second time in 32 days June to July last year, which I profer as a record...

ADD. Or maybe the bias triggered her and the workers opted for immediate supersedure. In any case I reckon she filled those cells. Do they look like swarm or supersedure?

 

[Jack Straw]

Thanks for your comments

The Q left by the original swarm. Swarmy bunch if they're at it again but maybe the influx confused them. My swarmiest strain went the second time in 32 days June to July last year, which I profer as a record...

ADD. Or maybe the bias triggered her and the workers opted for immediate supersedure. In any case I reckon she filled those cells. Do they look like swarm or supersedure?

I dismissed laying worker as it was one neatly laid egg in the bottom of the cell but perhaps that is what they do at crossover.

I hadn't realised that eggs could remain (unhatched and unviable) for more than three days

The Q left behind after swarming, yup I follow that. But is she likely to be laying just three eggs with days between them and nothing else anywhere. I had a good look and couldn't see any other eggs throughout.

They were supercedure cells, the sealed one was nice and straight in mid frame

 

[Hawklord]

Eggs do not all automatically hatch immediately after the classic 3 days. I have found the occasional egg that has not hatched after even longer periods of time than 14 days (probably egg not viable ie won't ever hatch) and also eggs that hatch after several days delay. They tend to be in cooler areas of the hive or the colony has become depleted of workers so not all brood can be covered

How do you know the eggs have not been replaced? I would have thought that an egg passed it's hatch date would start to decompose and smell causing workers to remove them.

 

[masterBK]

At low temperatures eggs can last quite a while and remain viable but I agree they will eventually either dry up or decompose. When I set some Apidea in May this year I used some combs constructed from the previous year and I could still see eggs in some of the cells ( nonviable I assume) . Also I believe Br Adam used to send eggs through the post. Eggs are far hardier than larvae.

 

[beeno]

Hi all,
I had a new queen laying up a whole frame of eggs and they were still there a week later! Got rid of her. I believe it was Big Long Darren who left a colony to their own devices with the same problem. They just dwindled. It could of course be incestuous mating which the bees are supposed to recognise. Are we now saying that bee eggs are the same as chicken eggs? They only start developing at a certain temperature. Is there any evidence for that notion, as it would be easy enough to check?
I would not have any confidence in those QCs as it seems a bit desparate! Should not be difficult to spot if you have laying workers now we know what they look like,

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

like these you mean

 

[Hawklord]

Eggs are far hardier than larvae.

I was told the opposite at a queen rearing course this year.