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Author Topic: help two eggs in a cell and supercedure?  (Read 2784 times)

Offline swingbyte

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help two eggs in a cell and supercedure?
« on: November 20, 2005, 08:20:05 am »
G'day from Australia.
I'm new to beekeeping and was given a swarm by a beekeeper a couple of weeks ago.  We inspected the hive last week and couldn't locate the queen or any eggs.  Today I inspected again and found quite a few eggs and what I think is the start of a queen cell close to the top of the frame.  However, I noticed several cells with more than one egg in them and what I have read so far suggest that I need to requeen.  If they're building a queen cell, does that mean I have a queen and a laying worker, or is the queen gone and the  workers are trying to raise a new one?
Should I requeen anyway.  How long before its two late for the coloney to survive? Any help would be greatly appreciated

Thanks

Offline Finsky

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help two eggs in a cell and supercedure?
« Reply #1 on: November 20, 2005, 10:37:05 am »
Something have happened to the queen. Those signs are that many workers may start to lay eggs. They are desparately queenles and they act that way. Old theory about one worker queen is not right. You may have tens or hundreds laying workers.

You just get a new egg laying queen and give it to colony.

Look at these texts.

Worker policing in the honey bee : http://www.shef.ac.uk/~taplab/flwrres.html

Policing insect societes.....    http://www.shef.ac.uk/~taplab/pdf/rwscience2005.pdf

Offline Michael Bush

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help two eggs in a cell and supercedure?
« Reply #2 on: November 20, 2005, 10:51:39 am »
I'd look for a queen.  I'd also add some brood from another hive, if you have any.  You probably have some laying workers, but you also might have a new queen.  A few doubles in the botom of a cell doesn't worry me so much as triples and more on the sides of the cells.  Ocassionally a new queen will lay a few doubles before she gets the hang of it.

Adding some brood will get some of the pheromones going that will help supress the laying workers.   If you do this first they will accept a queen better.  If you do it every week for a few weeks they may even raise their own queen.

Otherwise, the typical solution is to shake them out.
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Offline Finsky

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help two eggs in a cell and supercedure?
« Reply #3 on: November 20, 2005, 11:24:41 am »
Quote from: Michael Bush

Otherwise, the typical solution is to shake them out.


I never use that even if I have every years egg laying workers in mating nucs.  Once I have done it 40 years ago. When you give a brood frame with larvas it reveals if their queen is missing, like Michael said.