Queen honey bee characteristics and their relation to colony performance

The bee colonies used in the present work were headed with open mated local Carnica queen, Apis mellifera carnica. Percentage queen success and weight of newly emerged queen showed that queens reared in the months of spring was significantly higher to that in autumn. Also, queen honeybees weighed more in spring than those reared in autumn, i.e. 181 and 168 mg, respectively. Grafting with 12 or 24 hour old larvae increased the percentage of queen acceptance than when grafting was conducted with 36 or 48 hour old larvae. Honeybee colonies supplemented with a diet made of pollen and sugar at a ratio of 1: 1 plus 5 % thymol increased queen success in the spring and autumn, 90.4% and 77.4 % respectively. This diet also resulted in a highest mean weight of newly emerged virgin queens. Also, the use of new wax was superior to the use of previously utilized wax in improving the specification of queen honeybee. A colony comprising 9 combs was superior than colonies comprising 6 or 3 combs / colony in increasing queen success (89.6 % ) as well as higher weight in produced queens (184 mg). Percentage of queen honeybees reared by young nurse honeybee workers was 81.0% and their weight 173 mg which was significantly higher than those reared by older field honeybee workers. Under conditions of the present work the Italian honeybee race was found to be superior to the Carniolan race in producing higher specification of honeybee queens. The number of ovarioles, volume of spermatheca was determined; these two factors were reflected in the number of brood cells produced by the queen honeybee. Highest number of brood cells was recorded in the spring season in the 4. h brood cycle in a colony supplement by a diet made with pollen, sugar cake plus thymol and when queen grafting was carried out by 12 or 24 hour old larvae. Furthermore, strong colonies, comprising 9 combs / colony showed high number of brood cells to that in moderate or weak colonies. The biometrics of somebody appendages was determined (e.g. antennal flagellum, length and width of fore and hind wings, number of hooks on the costa of the hind wing, length of the femur, tibia and tarsus of the hind leg, length of the 3. d, 4. h and 7. h abdominal segment as well as sting). Results showed that their measurement or dimensions was always higher in honeybee queens emerging in spring and from the grafting of 12 hr old larvae. SDS-P AGE electrophoresis was conducted on 4. h instar worker larvae and queen larvae grafted from 12 and 48 hour old larvae. Four monomorphic protein bands were evident their molecular weights were 66.778, 46.630, 39.938 and 33.374 KDa. In the 4. h instar worker larva, a protein band in a molecular weight of 55.02 KDa was absent but was exhibited in queen larvae. Queen larvae grafted by 12 hour old larva exhibited a unique protein band in a molecular weight of 91.353 KDa. However, these queen larvae lacked a protein in the lowest molecular weight, 16.216 KDa. This protein was obvious in larvae of worker and also in queen larvae grafted by younger 48 hour old 1arva. Electrophoretic banding patterns of total protein for adult honeybee worker and queen emerging from grafting of either 12 or 48 hour old larvae showed six protein bands ranging.in the molecular weights, 128.03 to 29.429 KDa. Three monomorphic bands were exhibited their molecular weights were 89.89, 37.43 and 29.43 KDa. These mentioned three proteins were the only ones observed in worker honeybee. A queen honeybee emerging from grafting of 12 hour old larva displayed all six protein bands in the molecular weights of 128.033, 89.89, 58.0, 47.45, 37.43 and 29.43 KDa. The first band was unique in this queen as it was not detected in a queen emerging from grafting of 48 hour old larva and also in adult honeybee worker.