The Queen Emerges

[Kris^]

Today I checked the splits I made last week.  There were no eggs in either.  But in the cutdown, when I checked the queen cells I'd left there, I found one partly chewed up, and still being chewed open.  Inside was a bee, chewing her way out, and others outside helping.  This cell wasn't the largest one in the hive, but the first to open.  This hive is overflowing with bees, having kept all the foragers.

The walkaway split has about half the number of bees, a brood box full, no foragers to speak of.  No eggs and no queen I could find, despite the fact that the cell I'd left there was open.  There were several new cells, though, which I suspect will open by next weekend.      

The Farmer's Almanac predicts higher than average temperature this October.  Last year my queen was laying into November after pulling out of a varroa infestation.  No varroa this year, that I've seen.  So I'm feeding the small walkaway for now, and maybe might get it through the winter.

-- Kris

[manowar422]

Inside was a bee, chewing her way out, and others outside helping.

What great luck Kris, a lot of beekeepers including myself,
never have the chance to witness a Queen emerging from
her cell. 8)  8)  8)


I'm envious

[Michael Bush]

Unfortunately (or fotunately depending on the circumstances) I've seen it a lot.  I've seen it in the observation hive (fortunate).  I've also seen them chewing their way out as I was trying to get them into mating nucs (unfortunately).