Do drones die soon after they mate ?
yes, they have no biological use just after mating.
I am a first year beek but I recently read in the Backyard Beekeeper that during the process they lose their reproductive parts. See this board members lucky sight just the other day... Mated Virgin (http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,27181.0.html)
Glad I am not a Drone bee.. :jawdrop:
Drones die after mating the queen in the same way that worker bees die when they sting you. Their stingers are pulled from their abdomens. In the case of the drones, their reproductive organs are pulled from their abdomens and then they die.
Ouch! :shock:
Well, somebody's got to do it!
To add to the intrigue...I've read that there is an audible popping sound when the drone is ...uh... separated from the queen.
He's going out with a bang.
Dang, Scad! That hurts just thinking about it!
Quote from: Two Bees on April 06, 2010, 09:15:49 AM
Dang, Scad! That hurts just thinking about it!
Yeah, I sometimes give presentations, and you should hear the responses when I describe those details to the 3rd graders!!!
Ha ha, just kidding, I skip most of the drone information with the kid presentations, but I have described some of those details to adult presentations, and it is received with some shock....
I think that musta happened to me the other night....heard the "pop" but I'm still too scared to look.
Scott