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Author Topic: how to grab queen for marking  (Read 2931 times)

Offline tandemrx

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how to grab queen for marking
« on: July 07, 2010, 08:27:58 pm »
Have read some of the posts regarding marking queens, and while I understand bjorn and others distaste for the practice, I might like to do this at times, but have never manhandled the queen.

What is the "technique" for picking up the queen by hand?  Do you grab her wings?  How do you manage not to injure her?

Once you pick her up, if using a marking pen or glue-dots (as per robo), how do you free up the spot you may be handling to get at where you want to mark her (as I assume you are grabing her from the back).?

I have seen my mentor pick up queens and our state inspector, but never really paid attention to how you do it.

I know there is the little queen marking tube, but if I have to pick her up to put her in the tube I would figure I could just mark her without possibly squishing her with the foam plunger (although maybe this is the easiest way to go).

I also see that a "queen catcher" is marketed (little clasp clothespin type of device), but I would really worry about injuring her in that gizmo (not sure if anyone has experience with this thing).

I have a couple hives now that I really wish I had marked the queen because I don't know if it is the original queen or a superceded queen.

I am getting good at seeing the queen now, so its not for finding her, more for knowing how old she is and if she is the original queen I am thinking about or a superceded queen.

Not really interested in the argument for or against marking, more on the "how to".


thanks

Offline beekeeper1756

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Re: how to grab queen for marking
« Reply #1 on: July 07, 2010, 08:38:46 pm »
I have just recently, in the last two weeks, learned to mark my own queens.  A piece of advice my mentor taqught me was to "preload" your marker pen so that all  you have to do is just touch her back and she's marked.

I went out on a limb and was trying out the blue nitrile gloves (worked great) and I just picked her up by the wings.  Now, I built a queen marking tube for my own use and it worked like a champ.  However, I can see how you could pick up the queen by her wings and then mark her with your other hand.  I pulled four queens off of the comb by their wings and didn't injure them.

Offline John Schwartz

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Re: how to grab queen for marking
« Reply #2 on: July 07, 2010, 09:05:10 pm »
Not really interested in the argument for or against marking, more on the "how to".
thanks

Tip: practice on about 20 drones and you'll be a pro :)
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Offline Sparky

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Re: how to grab queen for marking
« Reply #3 on: July 07, 2010, 09:15:05 pm »
Robo has a great video of marking the queen.  Queen Marking : How-To

Offline Kathyp

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Re: how to grab queen for marking
« Reply #4 on: July 07, 2010, 09:16:15 pm »
how about this:  don't

but if you insist, do let us know how it turns out.  could be a good lesson for others.
Someone really ought to tell them that the world of Ayn Rand?s novel was not meant to be aspirational.

Offline AllenF

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Re: how to grab queen for marking
« Reply #5 on: July 07, 2010, 10:55:20 pm »
So if you don't mark them with paint, can you use like maybe a pink hair bow on her, or a flashy ribbon?  I see all ya'll coming up with the marketing plan right now.

Offline specialkayme

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Re: how to grab queen for marking
« Reply #6 on: July 07, 2010, 10:57:41 pm »
I've always had better luck with just waiting for the queen to stop walking on a frame, then tag her real quick with the paint brush.

Not the most sophisticated technique, but it works for me.

Offline Michael Bush

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Re: how to grab queen for marking
« Reply #7 on: July 08, 2010, 04:51:15 am »
I make a tent out of my thumb and finger and pin her thorax in the "tent".  Then I squeeze the sides of her throax and pick her up.  If I do it right the center is still exposed.  Some then grasp her legs but I'm not good at that...

And, of course, practice on drones, and of course, use NEXT year's color on the drones...
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Offline RayMarler

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Re: how to grab queen for marking
« Reply #8 on: July 08, 2010, 05:37:57 am »
I used to raise exotic birds in a former life, and when handling birds you always remember to let them keep their feet on a perch.  A stick or hammer handle or arm, anything will do.  If they are not perched, they are stressed and fearful, so keeping them on a perch of any kind will help keep them calmer as you handle them.

I figure it's same with queens, they want their feet on comb.  So, I grab her with my writing hand by the wings, then as I'm setting her on the comb, my other hand comes in to gently grab her along the sides of thorax, holding her with her feet on the comb.  I then have my writing hand free and I dot her with a pen.  I then put her into a roller cage to dry off before letting her back free on the comb.

I've found that the queens, as you are trying to mark them, are leaning their heads way back to try to prevent you marking them.  It is at that moment to be very careful or you, at least I have, will dot their eyes and/or antenna.  They really do resist being marked, and the workers try to clean her off immediately.  The way they act, it's like it must really be a bad thing for the queens, they really hate it.  (And just wait till one time she faints on you after you mark her and start to put her back into the hive. It really made me wonder, the time or two that has happened.)  But, I mark my queens anyway.  I like to know if they replace her, and it does make it faster finding her when needed. 

Offline tandemrx

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Re: how to grab queen for marking
« Reply #9 on: July 08, 2010, 08:19:48 am »
thanks for the replies.  Would like to understand Michael Bush's "tent" better.

Robo's video is great . . . . well, except for  the ad that keeps popping up at the bottom at the end of the video  :shock:



Has anyone had a queen sting them?
Marlers method is interesting, but would like to see a video of that too, because it isn't clear to me . . . you just kind of pin her to the comb?  I would think workers would eventually get displeased at the attention their queen is getting and sting you mercilessly.

Offline Michael Bush

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Re: how to grab queen for marking
« Reply #10 on: July 09, 2010, 12:37:21 am »
OK.  Imagine that the goal is to end up with your thumb and finger togehter but making an upside down "v" like a pup tent.  The queen is to end up in that space.  So you gently but quickly (the part that needs to be practiced on drones) pin her with this "tent" to the comb.  Now you have a thumb on one side and a finger on the other and you can shift the pressure so that you are holding her on each side of the thorax in order to pick her up.  You do this by gently rolling that pressure from down to the sides of the thorax.
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Offline kom

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Re: how to grab queen for marking
« Reply #11 on: July 09, 2010, 02:39:28 am »
Tandemrx - I mark my queens for similar reason, so I know if she's been superceded/swarmed etc...
I've never grabbed them just used the catcher and tube. In fact I use the queen catcher constantly, yesterday I made up six nucs with new queens and I catch the queen from the doner hive so I know she doesn't get transferred with a frame or when I shake bees. The cage is designed so it is very hard to harm queen, in fact with any dexterity it is practically impossible and when you have her she is totally protected, you can set her aside and this really speeds up working in the hive.

As for the tube mine is several years old and has a very fine flexible plastic mesh on top and works well, but I've seen a new one that has a thick blue plastic mesh that seems it would be rough on queen and hard to get pen through to mark her.

Also I use krylon brights paint pen from hobby lobby, they are flourescent and you can see the queen a mile away, the pink seems easiest to see, it is bright(almost glows) and contrast with color in hive. Flourescent green is second choice. You could still stick with color by year but for personal queens I want the easiest to see.

Hope this helps - km

 

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