All Hail the Queen Bee

There’s been lots of buzz about a certain queen bee, but we don't think you’re ready for this jelly—royal jelly, that is. It’s time to take a look into the lives of our favorite queen honey bees. Here are four facts about queen bees that you can share with the hive:

Bow down

The queen bee is the leader of a colony and mother to the majority of its worker (female) and drone (male) bees. The queen bee is fertilized in flight by 10 to 15 drones, and it is the only time she leaves the hive. From there, she’ll establish her colony and lay up to 2,000 eggs per day (which is more than her own body weight in eggs)!

She didn’t just wake up like this

Run the hive

How can you tell a queen bee from worker bees? Her size! The queen is the longest and widest bee in the entire colony. She is bigger than the others thanks to her diet of royal jelly through physical maturity, while other bees will only feed on royal jelly for the first few days after hatching. The queen also differs from other females because of what she doesn't eat: honey and pollen.

Staying on top

The queen is one busy gal! Since she is continually laying eggs in the hive, her every need is met by other bees. These tasks include feeding her and removing her waste. It’s only after her pheromones begins to fade that the worker bees will prepare another queen bee to take over. If the current queen should win in battle against the wannabe(e) queen, she’ll continue to lay eggs and will remain queen of the hive.