The queen bee is the single reproductive female in a honey bee colony, responsible for laying thousands of eggs daily to maintain the population. Successfully locating her during a hive inspection is a fundamental and often challenging skill for beekeepers. Her presence confirms the colony is healthy and functioning properly, while her absence is a signal of potential disaster or supersedure. Identifying her requires recognizing her distinct physical form, interpreting her behavior, and using methodical search techniques.
Distinct Physical Features
The queen bee is the longest individual in the colony, typically measuring between 18 and 22 millimeters, which is significantly larger than a worker bee. This size is primarily due to her specialized reproductive anatomy. Her abdomen is long, smooth, and tapers to a point, extending noticeably past her wings.
The elongated abdomen houses her fully developed ovaries, giving her a sleek, almost shiny appearance, unlike the worker bees whose abdomens are comparatively shorter, rounder, and covered in fine hairs. This difference in abdominal structure is a reliable marker, distinguishing her from drones, which are also large but possess a stockier, blunt-ended abdomen. A queen’s wings appear disproportionately short, covering only about two-thirds of her body length when at rest.
This short-wing appearance contrasts sharply with the wings of a worker bee, which extend almost to the tip of their smaller abdomen. Her long, spread-out legs further contribute to her distinct profile on the comb. Although she is equipped with a stinger, she reserves its use only for fighting rival queens.
Behavioral Clues and Context
The queen’s mere presence is communicated throughout the hive by a complex blend of chemicals called Queen Retinue Pheromone (QRP), which influences worker bee behavior, suppressing their ability to lay eggs and signaling the colony’s reproductive status. The most obvious visual confirmation of her identity is the retinue, a small circle of eight to ten young worker bees that constantly surround her.
These attendant workers face the queen, grooming her, feeding her protein-rich royal jelly, and gently touching her body to collect and distribute her pheromones to the rest of the hive. This creates a small, moving clearing on the comb that immediately draws the eye away from the chaotic movement of the general population. Her movement is purposeful and deliberate; she tends to walk with a slow, steady gait, often pushing aside workers who quickly move out of her path.
The most definitive behavioral confirmation is observing her in the act of oviposition, placing her abdomen inside a cell to lay a single egg, perfectly centered on the cell floor. Before laying, she measures the cell with her antennae to determine whether to lay a fertilized (worker) or unfertilized (drone) egg.
Techniques for Locating the Queen
A successful queen search begins with a methodical approach, focusing the inspection on the frames most likely to contain her. The queen typically remains within the central brood nest, the warmest section of the hive where eggs and young larvae are present. Beginning the search in the outer frames of the brood box, which often contain only honey or pollen, is generally less productive.
Frame Handling
When examining a frame, handle it with slow, gentle movements to prevent startling the queen, which might cause her to run to the underside of the frame or hide. Using minimal smoke is advisable, as excessive smoke can push her into hiding. A helpful technique is to scan the frame facing you, still in the hive, as you lift the adjacent frame, as the sudden light often causes her to move quickly toward the bottom corner.
Visual Search Strategy
Once a frame is removed, scan the surface by looking across it at a slight angle, which helps to catch her taller profile and elongated shape. Do not stare at individual bees, but rather scan for the distinctive pattern of the retinue or a body shape that breaks the visual uniformity of the workers. If you find a pattern of fresh, centered eggs, you know the queen was recently on that frame, which can narrow the search area.