A honey bee colony is a complex society with highly specialized roles, and among its members is the male honey bee, or drone. Drones are produced for the singular purpose of reproduction, a function that ensures the genetic diversity and continuation of honey bee populations. Unlike the female worker bees who perform a multitude of tasks, the drone’s existence is entirely focused on mating with a queen from another colony.
Identifying a Drone Bee
Drones possess distinct physical features that make them identifiable from the female worker bees and the queen. They are visibly larger and more robust than worker bees, with a thick, barrel-shaped body that lacks the tapered abdomen of a queen. While their size can cause them to be mistaken for a queen, their body shape is more rounded.
The most definitive feature of a drone is its head, which is dominated by enormous compound eyes that meet at the top. This is an adaptation that provides the vision needed to spot a queen during high-altitude mating flights, while worker bees have smaller, separated eyes. Another differentiator is that drones have no stinger, as the stinger is a modified egg-laying organ found only in females. Lacking a stinger, wax glands, and pollen baskets, the drone’s anatomy is tailored for its reproductive journey.
The Drone’s Sole Purpose
The drone’s sole purpose is to mate with a virgin queen from another colony, a mechanism that promotes genetic diversity. To achieve this, drones leave the hive on warm, clear afternoons to gather in specific locations known as Drone Congregation Areas (DCAs). These aerial sites, which can be 5 to 35 meters above the ground, are used year after year by drones from hundreds of different colonies.
The genetics of a drone are unique. Drones develop from unfertilized eggs laid by a queen in a process called parthenogenesis. This means they are haploid, carrying only one set of chromosomes from their mother. Consequently, all the sperm a drone produces is genetically identical. When a queen enters a DCA, she is pursued by a “comet” of hopeful drones, with only the fastest and most agile succeeding in the mid-air mating. A queen will mate with 15 to 20 drones on average during her nuptial flights to gather enough genetic material for her life.
Life Inside the Hive
When not participating in mating flights, a drone’s life inside the hive is one of relative inactivity and complete dependence. They do not perform any tasks for hive maintenance. Drones cannot forage for nectar or pollen, produce wax for comb construction, care for the young larvae, or help defend the hive. Their short proboscis is not suited for gathering nectar from flowers.
Their inability to perform these tasks means they must be fed by worker bees, consuming the colony’s resources without directly contributing to its stores. Their presence is tolerated during the spring and summer when resources are abundant and new queens are actively mating. While they do not work, their larger bodies can help generate heat, contributing to the thermoregulation of the brood nest.
The End of a Drone’s Life
A drone’s life concludes in one of two ways. For the small fraction of drones that successfully mate, the act itself is fatal. During copulation, the drone’s reproductive organ, the endophallus, is ripped from his abdomen as he separates from the queen, leading to his death moments later.
The vast majority of drones, however, will never mate. As autumn arrives and floral resources dwindle, the drones become a drain on the hive’s food stores needed for winter survival. The female worker bees systematically stop feeding the drones and then forcibly expel them from the colony. Unable to feed themselves or survive the cold temperatures outside the hive, these unmated drones perish.