Drones from laying worker and virgin queens

[hawkman]

Hi everyone,

Been some time since I've been around and I need some comments.

We made a bunch of nucs and queens late last fall. Those that pulled through are gone and I have one 4 frame nuc left that the queen failed in and laying workers are doing their thing.

We made 16 new queen cells, due to hatch this Tuesday so I will be making up a bunch of finishing nucs today to put the cells into tomorrow.

That one drone layer nuc has been kept around for our clubs field day on the 12th as an example of what can happen.

I am concerned that the drones from that one laying worker nuc are of inferior genetics since they were layed by a worker and I should kill it off. Or, I will have one extra queen cell left over and I was wondering if I should give it to the laying worker hive to revive it and block the drones in unitl the rest of the queens are mated? If I do the later, what about drones being confined to the nuc for the next 2 - 3 weeks? Any problem with them evacuating their waste in the nuc and messing it all up? Nosemia infection???

Whatever the case, I dont think I want those laying worker drones mating with all the new queens. Do I? Any comments here? What would you do?

Thanks,

Scott

[Walliebee]

I am concerned that the drones from that one laying worker nuc are of inferior genetics since they were layed by a worker...


I'm no expert on genetics, but I see no reason that a drone laying queen would have interior genetics compared to a fertilized queen. The reasons your queen was not fertile would have nothing to due to the genes she has, or the genes her drones would pass on. If she came from good stock, then her drones are of good stock.





...what about drones being confined to the nuc for the next 2 - 3 weeks? Any problem with them evacuating their waste in the nuc and messing it all up? Nosemia infection???


Yea, that sounds like it would be a real problem.

[hawkman]

walliebee,

I'll agree with that but these drones are being layed by a worker not a dlq. The workers are from queen stock but still, they are worker drones. Anyone else have an opinion? I would like to turn this nuc around and sell it but don't want to risk all the others being put up if there is any difference when it comes to just exactly who layed the drones.

Scott

[Michael Bush]

>I am concerned that the drones from that one laying worker nuc are of inferior genetics since they were layed by a worker and I should kill it off.

I see no reason to kill them off nor why you would think they would be of inferior genetics. They will be the same genetics as the workers of the hive before it went laying worker.

>Or, I will have one extra queen cell left over and I was wondering if I should give it to the laying worker hive

Sometimes they accept it. I'd also put a frame of open brood in with it.

> and block the drones in unitl the rest of the queens are mated?

The drones are your friends. Leave them alone.

> If I do the later, what about drones being confined to the nuc for the next 2 - 3 weeks?

You can't confine a nuc for three weeks very well without a lot of negative impact.

> Any problem with them evacuating their waste in the nuc and messing it all up?

Of course.

> Nosemia infection???

Probably not, but not impossible.

>Whatever the case, I dont think I want those laying worker drones mating with all the new queens. Do I?

Why?

>What would you do?

Leave them alone. If you've got it, give the laying worker hive some open brood every week for three weeks and they will sort it all out.

http://www.bushfarms.com/beeslayingworkers.htm

[dcross]

How many drones will a laying worker hive actually raise to adulthood? As nuts as everything is in one of them I doubt they're very effective at raising brood. Could be they're simply housing a lot of drones from other colonies?