Bees are part of a group called “social insects”, which also includes wasps and ants, belonging to the order Hymenoptera. Currently, about 20,000 species of bees are known around the world and all share characteristics typical of their group. In a hive, which is where the bees live and which is built by themselves, there is a division and hierarchy where we will find the queen bee, the workers and the drones, each with a particular function. During its reproduction and at birth, its future function and work will be defined, and this will depend on where the queen bee places the eggs, whether in larger or smaller cells (which together form the hive).
In this article on our site we will tell you all about how bees are born and its fascinating details and characteristics.
How long does it take for a queen bee to lay eggs?
To better understand how bees are born, let's first review their reproduction. Within the bee colony, the queen is the only one capable of reproducing, so we can say that she is the mother of the entire hive and the one in charge to continue with your multiplication. She will lay fertilized and unfertilized eggs, from the former worker female bees will emerge (without the ability to reproduce) and from the latter drones will emerge, which are reproductive males and will be in charge of mating only with the queen. When the queen lays her eggs, those destined to give female workers will be placed in smaller cells, approximately 6 mm in diameter, while the eggs destined for drones will be laid in slightly larger cells (approximately 8 mm in diameter)..
Subsequently, the queen bee will begin to produce pheromones to prevent the female workers from developing sexually, and this occurs through tropholaxis, a process by which they pass food from their mouths to each other. Then, the queen will leave the hive only once to make the fertilization or nuptial flights, where she will mate with several drones, so this system of Mating is called polyandrous. This type of system ensures genetic diversity within the colony, since bees from the same mother, but from different fathers, will hatch from the eggs.
After about Five days after mating, the queen begins laying her eggs. In favorable times, where food availability, weather conditions and size are right, she will lay around 1 500 eggs per day The whole process from the flights nuptials, the mating and storage of spermatozoa and later the laying of the eggs can last about two or three weeks, depending on the environmental conditions. In addition, in another three weeks the eggs will be ready to hatch.
During mating, the queen "collects" sperm from different males, storing them in her spermatheca, which is an organ of the queen's reproductive system that, in addition to serving this purpose, also it is where the eggs are fertilized. For more details, don't miss this other article: "How do bees reproduce?".
How are bees born?
The stages a bee goes through during its development are egg, larva, pupa or nymph and finally adult As we mentioned, the The queen stores the sperm in her spermatheca, where the fertilization of the eggs will also take place. So, let's remember that the queen bee produces fertilized and unfertilized eggs, the former for the birth of female worker bees and the latter for the birth of male bees, the drones. Let's see below how bees are born depending on whether they are male or female.
How are worker bees born?
The fertilized eggs will be diploid, that is, with double the number of chromosomes, and once the larvae emerge, they are fed with royal jelly for the first three days. After this time, only the bee destined to be queen will continue with this feeding, the others, that is, those destined to be workers, will be fed with a mixture of pollen and honey. Once the eggs have hatched and the food provided, the cells will be sealed with wax.
During its development and around day number 7 after spawning, the bee's stage ispupa At this time they wrap themselves in a protective cocoon inside their cell and feed on the liquid mixture of pollen and honey that the worker nurse bees have provided. As we mentioned, only the one that will be destined for the queen will be fed with royal jelly, as we explained in this other article: "What do bees eat?".
When the final stage of its development arrives, also inside the cocoon, the final metamorphosisoccurs, where an adult bee emerges, that if it is a queen it will take about 15-16 days, while the birth of a worker bee will occur at 20 days after laying The bee inside the cocoon is very small and whitish in color. When it reaches adulthood, that is, when the bees are born, the queen will be distinguished by its larger size and its more slender body due to the presence of fertile reproductive organs.
The functions of the workers will depend on their lifetime, since the youngest at first will be in charge of interior tasks, such as cleaning the honeycombs and the entire hive. The largest ones can leave the hive and collect pollen or nectar, and then become nurses and take charge of feeding the queen bee and her sisters that are in the larval stage. Once grown, they are able to produce wax and build combs.
How are drones born?
On the other hand, the queen can lay unfertilized eggs that will produce drones and that, as we said, will depend on the dimensions of the eggs. cells (the largest cells are intended for drones). These are reproductive males and the stages of their development will be the same as those of the rest of the bees, only that it will be a longer process than that of the workers and that of the queen (approximately, the development of a drone will take 25 days) and their food will be based on honey.
This unfertilized egg develops into a drone thanks to parthenogenesis, a process by which a cell develops through sexual reproduction reproductive until forming an adult individual without fertilization having occurred, and that, in the case of bees, will give haploid cells (with only one set of chromosomes or half the total number) that will develop exclusively into males. The drone will be different from the rest, since it will not have a stinger either, it will be larger than the workers and its eyes will be larger, which will allow it to have a better vision. In addition, it does not have pollen-collecting legs or a tongue adapted to extract nectar from flowers, so its most important function will be to mate with the queen.
Bee Hatch Video
In this video made by El Ciudadano TV we can see much better how bees are born and the different stages they go through before emerging. This is the birth of worker bees, so the entire process shown occurs in approximately 21 days.
How is a queen bee born?
Within this peculiar group of insects, as we now know, only the queen bee is fertile, since she is the only female that reaches sexual maturity completely thanks to her diet based on royal jelly. On the other hand, the workers are sterile and have atrophied reproductive organs. This difference occurs since they are in the larval stage and will be determined by the feeding that the females receive. The queen bee is born about 16 days after spawning, following the same process explained in the previous section, and its innate function is to perpetuate the colony. Thus, as we explained, it will lay fertilized eggs that will produce worker females (non-reproductive) or non-fertilized eggs for the development of drones (reproductive males responsible for mating only with the queen). The queen has a stylized appearance and, in addition to being larger than the others, her wings are shorter and lighter in color, and of course, as we said, her reproductive system is fully developed.
Once she emerges and after a few days, she will be ready to leave the hive and make the nuptial flights to be able to mate with several males, whom she attracts by means of pheromones. The queen is so important in a hive that if for any reason she dies prematurely, the entire hive can become disoriented and her reproductive functions become unbalanced.
Now that you know how bees are born, both the queen, the workers and the drones, don't miss this video that explains why these animals are so important for the planet.
