Have you ever heard of the term “the queen bee?” In our society, a queen bee refers to an individual who is considered the most influential within a group. We see this term be flung around in pop culture, particularly in old high school movies of the early 2000s. For someone to be a queen bee, they tend to be highly respected and/or revered within their communities. Thus, they tend to be at the top of their hierarchy-like structured social group or amongst their friends. Hence, in bee colonies, the queen bee is highly respected and thought of within the colony. The queen bee is the cornerstone of the hive, with other members of the bee colony depending on and pampering the queen. Therefore, they are essential to the functionality and well-being of the colony itself. In this article, you will be learning more about the process of their life, how they impact their society, and why they are critical in determining the survival of their colony.
First of all, it is important to make clear that there is only one queen bee needed in each colony. Additionally, the queen bee differs anatomically and its role within the colony to other females. Even before its full development, the potential candidates for the queen bee are treated differently than the larvaes of other bees. Because all female larvae can potentially become a queen bee, only a select few are chosen. Usually, this number varies between 10 and 20. Thus, these selected larvae are fed a different diet of royalactin, which allows for them to fully develop fertile ovaries or reproductive systems. Eventually, they will undergo a process called metamorphosis, in which the larva will transform into a fully-grown/matured bee, and thus prompt them to exit their queen cell. Once they make their way out, the queen bees begin their life by ending the existence of their siblings. They make “piping” sounds to attract/alert their siblings and initiate a fight to the death in order to claim leadership of the specific colony, a barbaric process that even results in the killing of queen bees who haven’t yet escaped from their cells.
After this war is complete, however, the queen bee is free to go on a singular mating trip with a male member called droves and gain the ability to give birth to fertilized eggs for 3-5 years. To add on, the queen bees are the only members of their society that can give birth to babies. Obviously, this role is extremely critical as it is the only way the colony can grow and continue to survive as the years pass. Consequently, the most important roles of the queen bee are to reproduce and spread pheromones throughout the hive. All of the other female bees serve as workers that help with this process and the gathering/production of honey. Therefore, this is an accurate representation of the concepts polyandry and eusociality. Polyandry is a society where one female of a species mates with multiple males, showcasing the hierarchy within bee colonies. Eusociality is where societies of species aid specific members that can reproduce and further their population. Thus, the queen bees are the only members of colonies that can reproduce and give birth, while the workers simply strive to help the queen by spreading her pheromones.
The bees pictured above are suffocating/cuddling the presumably old/sick queen bee to death.
However, contrary to what you may think, queen bees are not honored and pampered for the entirety of their lifetimes. Unless the queen bee leaves with a swarm because of the limited space within the hive, the queen will not die a natural death. To clarify, as the queen bee ages, her fertility will decrease. Thus, other members of the colony will raise new potential candidates to become the next queen bee. Once the bee fully metamorphosizes, kills the other candidates, and mates, it will return to the hive to kill its predecessor, a cruel fate for its mother. Hence, with this cycle, bee colonies have been able to survive and thrive in the environment, and grow their population throughout the years.
Sources:
https://www.geesbees.ca/post/the-queen-bee
https://www.geesbees.ca/post/2017/05/27/what-is-a-honey-bee-swarm
Pictures:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_bee
https://wisconsinpollinators.com/Bee/BA_HoneyBeeSex.aspx
https://www.serendipi-bee.ca/basics/intro/life-cycle/
https://funfactz.com/animal-facts/cuddle-death/
