Are they drone cells?

orvette1 · September 14, 2010, 10:45:56 PM

1 year ago in Feb I picked up a swarm. They were struggling, so I put them in a nuc where they have been for the last 1 1/2 years. The have plastic frames, but have only built fully on 2 and partially on 1 more. Now they have what looks like pimples on the built frames. I was wondering if these are drone cells? I know they are not queen cells, they don't look like those, just like pimples.

OzBuzz · September 15, 2010, 12:32:27 AM

Can you post any pics? and why do you think it is that they haven't boomed? it sounds a bit odd that they're still happy in a nuc after a year and a half. Is the brood pattern solid? are they productive?

luvin honey · September 15, 2010, 01:39:35 AM

Drone cells look an awful lot like Kix cereal. :)

tecumseh · September 15, 2010, 08:16:07 AM

the capping of worker cells is fairly flat. drone cells are convex (domed outwardly).

sounds like the hive has issues.

orvette1 · September 16, 2010, 01:42:07 AM

Thank you, they are drone cells. You described them exactly. I don't know why they haven't done much. I think it is because the queen is old. I am not experienced enough to know what the queen looks like when she is with the others. So I will just wait and see what happens in the future. Again thanks for the help.

JP · September 16, 2010, 02:09:33 AM

Quote from: orvette1 on September 16, 2010, 01:42:07 AM
Thank you, they are drone cells. You described them exactly. I don't know why they haven't done much. I think it is because the queen is old. I am not experienced enough to know what the queen looks like when she is with the others. So I will just wait and see what happens in the future. Again thanks for the help.

You should be able to find her on 2 and 1/4 frames if she is in fact there. Look for bees forming a circle, she will be in the middle.

...JP

tecumseh · September 16, 2010, 08:20:00 AM

I would suggest that you are quite unlikely to see the queen and her attendants in the way described in the prior post. could happen. but in the large majority of cases once a hive is disturbed she will be skitting about on her own.

not certain if you might know what a red wasp looks like, but a mature queen looks and is about the size of a red wasp. once located you can look at how she carries here self moving across the comb and then at the condition of the ends of her wings and tell something about her age. dragging her abdomen and frayed wings are good signs that the queen age is showing.

excessive drone cell is also a good sign that a queen time is done.

AllenF · September 16, 2010, 10:30:07 AM

Here is a pic of a frame with drone cells at the bottom and a little at the top.

Pic from http://www.masterbeekeeper.org

Kathyp · September 16, 2010, 11:10:52 AM

you are most likely to be able to find the queen routinely by learning to observe the behavior that JP has described. it is a useful skill to have, not only in your own hives, but in doing cutouts. after you have seen it a time or two it begins to jump out at you when you look at the frames.

Scadsobees · September 16, 2010, 01:28:08 PM

1.5 years and only 3 frames? Yeah...there's problems there :roll:

I'd guess that the failing queen finally gave out, and now either is a drone-layer or you have a laying worker. If you can find a beekeeper in your area that is willing to stop by and help out, that would get you a long way.

-rick

luvin honey · September 16, 2010, 07:23:45 PM

Still, isn't that a fairly amazing brood pattern? :shock:

greenbtree · September 16, 2010, 08:30:41 PM

Allen F - d-mn that's a nice looking frame!!! Luvin - I love the Kix reference! I will always think of it that way now. A lot of the time when I spot one of my queens I see her because of the little circle of bees all pointing in. Yeah, not always, but if you see that you should look.

JC

AllenF · September 16, 2010, 09:07:29 PM

Kix was a great way to describe them.

luvin honey · September 16, 2010, 09:39:20 PM

geez--I'm not paying attention!! I didn't notice that AllenF posted a web photo, not the OP posting his own frame. So, yes an incredible brood pattern, but not the OP's brood pattern. :roll: And here I was sitting here wondering how a prolific queen like that could not build up a hive faster than she has.

As for Kix, I wish I were clever enough to have thought that one up. It has been floating around this site for a while and I thought it was a perfect description, too :)

Kathyp · September 16, 2010, 10:13:42 PM

i think it might have come from cindi. at least that's where i got it.

tecumseh · September 17, 2010, 07:35:44 AM

curious picture AllenF. I don't think I have ever noticed drone cells hanging from the bottom bar in quite that fashion. Was the hive the frame came from equipped with a slatted bottom rack?

BrentX · September 18, 2010, 04:39:34 PM

So glad to find this thread. I have been looking for drones in my hive but have never seen what I was expecting. Went in a friends give today and saw exactly wfat has been described here. But have not seen a single drone or drone cell in my hive.
Maybe its my mutt bees or maybe they just don't feel the need to have any males around