uncapped q cell question

[Cuckmere couple]

a friend down the road has had the same experience as me

unmated queen in hive but with 2-4 capped q cells intact, which, when you open, have live queens in them

when do colonies do this?

i thought first queen out swarmed or killed the rest?

 

[enrico]

Nope, that queen would swarm again ..... A cast ......more reproduction, one hive can become five or more.
E

 

[Cuckmere couple]

thanks E

so is it normal to have a q active in the hive and others yet to come out?

is it certain then that they will swarm as a cast when the next one emerges i.e. have they gone beyond the point of killing the queen

 

[thorn]

Sometimes the first queen to emerge kills the others in their cells, sometimes she allows the next one to emerge while she takes off with a cast. This is why, if you're too late to forestall a swarm, you should not leave more than two or three queen cells. But don't leave just one, in case something goes awry. Just hope you've got one of the killer queens.
My first colony was swarmy, and threw off cast after cast until I learnt what to do.

 

[Cuckmere couple]

ok

very helpful

and can i simply take a queen still in a capped cell and introduce to another using a cage?

 

[masterBK]

Thorn : I would leave just one cell (leaving two is asking for a swarm) but take an insurance 2 or 3 frame nucleus with another one.

 

[BernardBlack]

Leaving two or more Q cells - won’t that possibly lead to injury of a Queen if there’s a fight?

Better to leave one Q cell, and put a spare few in nucs, In case the one QC doesn’t work out?

PS. Speaking from experience. Left one QC, accidentally damaged it. Had to seek new Q even though I had just destroyed some!

 

[Vortex]

Sometimes the first queen to emerge kills the others in their cells, sometimes she allows the next one to emerge while she takes off with a cast.

Technically incorrect. The emergent queen has nothing to do with this process, its the workers acting as a hive mind that determine whether then allow the first queen(s) out to kill the remainder or not. This is why you can get multiple virgin queens in a cast swarm (anecdotally up to 13), or multiple secondary casts. If the workers don't feel that the colony is strong enough to swarm again then they will ensure that unhatched queens are killed.

 

[B+.]

Thorn : I would leave just one cell (leaving two is asking for a swarm) but take an insurance 2 or 3 frame nucleus with another one.

You could try caging the cells. When the cells emerge, you can choose one and bank the other as an insurance policy (or even put her in a mating nuc as a spare).
The colony may try to swarm but would have to return as they wouldn't have a queen.

 

[jeff33]

But if your bees are that swarmy, is it even worth trying to continue with that line? My first bought in nuc swarmed within a month of putting it in a full hive. I captured the swarm and ended the season with 2 hives. Following year I ended up with 4 or 5 hives as all they wanted to do was swarming... Third year, replaced all my queens for better stock which has made for a less stressful experience ever since... Well until I captured an unknown swarm which is vile.