[…]Bigio*1,3, Hasan Al Toufailia1 , William O H Hughes2 , Francis L W Ratnieks1 Honey bee mating cannot be directly controlled in the same way as in many agriculturally important animals. Instrumental insemination is, however, possible and can be used as an aid in selective breeding. Hygienic behaviour, in which worker bees detect and remove dead or diseased brood from […]
[…]and meeting at drone congregation areas. How do honey bees minimize the chance of virgin queens mating with their brothers, and how does the mating process work? My interest into this subject is strongly influenced by the papers and books of Gudrun & Nikolaus […]
The Mating of Queens - Use of nucs, mini-nucs and mini+ nucs Whether you are using natural queen cells, emergency queen cells, grafted queen cells or cells produced from larval transfer kits (such as Jenter or Cupkit), the next step in the process is finding a home for the queen cell or virgin queen so that she can go on […]
[…]better that your queen cells are staggered by date, it makes it easier when making up queen mating nuclei over several days rather than all in one day. I make up these on the 10th day after grafting, so you see that writing it down or taking a photograph is a must and does make life so much easier. Four […]
[…]crossbar on which the mini-nuc rests. A thick band of rubber cut from a car inner tube straps the nuc to the stake. The mini-nucs are sited so as to give the bees something to help them orient on to the site, such as a bush or small tree. This reduces losses due to queens returning to the wrong nuc. […]
[…]but queen cells may be duds. There are methods of minimising the downsides of both. 6) What mating nuc will you use? Three frame nuc needs more resources in terms of bees but is more successful. Mini nucs require fewer bees but are less successful and need more attention. 7) What method will you use to introduce your queens into […]
[…]handling techniques, selection criteria, producing queen cells, cell building colonies, mating nucs, etc. These courses are very popular, with lots of information and tips on improving your own and your local bees. Past experience suggests they are likely to fill up quickly. Numbers will be limited to give attendees individual attention where needed. See the BIBBA website https://bibba.com/event-info-2/ for details. […]
[…]with drones from the surrounding area. This is in contrast to other agricultural livestock where matings can be controlled and specific crosses produced at will. The use of exotic queens does not just affect the colonies that they are introduced to; there is a knock-on effect on the local population. Drones produced by imported queens will mate with new queens […]
[…]season (not much honey though)! The best method for splitting is to find the queen and make up a nuc with her (Frame of brood, shake 2 frames of bees in if staying in same apiary, frame of food and make up with spare empty comb or foundation, feed next day.) The bees in the now queenless colony will create […]
Please login to view this […]
