My Bees Are Fine! Thanks to all who replied to earlier posts!

18 years ago

Well, a beekeeper of 13 years and owner of dozens of hives was nice enough to come over and inspect my hives today.

He said for me not to worry as the girls are very healthy and thriving. He said it could have been the frost, it could have been one of the queen's mates was a relitive or a number of things, but a certain percentage of the pupa generally has some kind of problem anyway and is removed and discarded by the worker bees.

He and I popped open several Drone Cells and didn't see a single Varroa. I pulled 2 drones from their cells earlier that day and thought I saw one. Turns out it wasn't. So, I guess things are fine.

The first deep super is almost all drawn out and ready for me to add the second supper already!! I guess that means I'm doing good for a new package hive this year in New Hampshire.

I am so releaved and happy now! Thank you SOO MUCH to everyone who responded to my posts!

Bob

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Comments (8)

ccrb1
18 years ago
FYI, if a queen mates with a brother drone, 50% of the eggs of that union will not result in viable larvae
BobD2112
Original Author
18 years ago
Now I understand that a queen mates with multipul drones on her mating flight(s). So, if a "brother" was 1 of many, why would 50% not be viable? You'd think it would be 10 or 20, maybe even a high of 30%. if she mated with a brother an 1 other mate that was a non relitive, maybe 50%. But if she mates with 1 relitive and 4 or 5 non-relitives, you think the percentage would be low of non-viable larvae.
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ccrb1
18 years ago
no. it was explained in a recent article I read. the brother is a clone of the queen. Drones have no father. Such a high percentage is expected, and yet, to inbreed some traits it's done on purpose.

Remember the queen mates with 10-15 drones, and if only one is a brother, the total about would be 1/10th times 50% (or 1/20th) for 10 drones, or 1/15th times 50% (or 1/30th) for 15 drones.
brendan_of_bonsai
18 years ago
Unless its a sex linked issue then it would be 25% with the problem and 50% carriors because the problems that arise from inbreeding are all recessive problems.
pennsylvania_pete
18 years ago
Carol, I would be suspect of any article that claimed a drone can be a clone of a queen. Just as when you clone anything, the sex remains the same.
txbeeguy
18 years ago
I think you also have to be skeptical of just a straight mathematical interpretation of what happens. During the queen's mating flight(s) and her mating with multiple drones, she receives a total "deposit" of about 90 million sperm, of which approximately seven million are ultimately stored in her spermatheca for future use in fertilizing eggs. And it is certainly NOT clear if all these seven million are uniformly mixed, or as some entomologists have suggested they are stored (packed) away in a 'first in, last out' sort of arrangement. Only if they are "free floating" [as they are stored in the spermatheca] and thoroughly mixed would the randomness allow for the straight math approach to approximate the results mentioned previously.
Merops_apiaster
18 years ago
Hello Bob, can you tell me if your bees are still fine in july?
I have SAD bees (Stress Accelerated Decline) in a control hive (a hive no treated with vaseline and thymol). It is a higyenic hive, no doubt, (early in the morning you can observe dead pupa at entrance, later is removed), drones larva have not many varroa (five varroas in a frozen drone frame of layens), and I have harvested 20 kg of early spring honey. But I have observed that this hive is not harvesting pollen, it is harvesting nectar, only nectar, other hives are working eucaliptus pollen.
I think that collapse is near (despite high population). IÂ´m going to split (thymol works better in nucleos), add a pair of capped brood with nurses, and finish with this "bee inmune deficiency".

By the way, I have read that inbreeding does not produce perfect bees, the larva is eaten by the nurses bees before six days old.
txbeeguy
18 years ago
BobD,
I agree with Merops, lets have a follow up; we're interested in how your hive turned out. Did you get some surplus honey from them? How 'bout an update?

My Bees Are Fine! Thanks to all who replied to earlier posts!

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ccrb1

BobD2112
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My Bees Are Fine! Thanks to all who replied to earlier posts!

Comments (8)

ccrb1

BobD2112Original Author

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BobD2112
Original Author