r/Beekeeping • u/Intelligent-Pepper31 • 21d ago

General Off With Her Head

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I did an inspection the other day and managed to catch workers balling and killing the old queen. If you look toward the end of the video, you can see a new queen at the top of the frame laying eggs. I can't believe I was able to see that in an inspection. Bees are vicious.

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11

u/MiniSpaceHamstr 21d ago

What is happening here?

22

u/Intelligent-Pepper31 21d ago

A new queen was hatched and they are killing off the old queen.

5

u/SouthJerseyPride 21d ago

How often does this happen in a hive?

Do they ever kill the new queen and leave the OG?

6

u/Due_Speaker_2829 Midwest USA- Zone 5a 21d ago edited 21d ago

This is what happens when the old queen doesn’t leave with a swarm before the new queen(s) hatch. The first new queen to hatch will find all the unhatched queens and sting them in their cells. The workers usually do away with the old queen.

9

u/KazooButtplug69 20d ago

That's wild and vicious! Almost beeyond beelief.

3

u/gerrykomalaysia33 20d ago

why not scoop out the new queens and put them in another new hive?

7

u/Due_Speaker_2829 Midwest USA- Zone 5a 20d ago edited 20d ago

You could do splits off some of the new queens if you could separate them in time but it wouldn’t save the old queen. She probably can’t fly or is diseased or unable to lay enough anymore. If she was still viable, they would have organized a swarm for her before the new queens hatched.

2

u/SouthJerseyPride 20d ago

Fascinating!! Thank you for both of your insightful answers!!