You probably got a new queen bee in a cage for your colony. Or may be thinking about buying a new queen for your hive. The queen came in a small cage. So, you might be asking how long can a queen bee live in a cage?
Queen Bee can live in a cage as long as attendant bees are alive. In fact, if you can care for her, queen bee can survive in a cage even after attendants have died. However, it’s not a good practice to keep queen in cage for more than 10 days.
In this blog post, I am going to discuss with you the 2 most important things about caged queen.
- Answer to the question of how long can a queen bee live in a cage
- How to care for a caged queen
Why Put Queen Bee In A Cage?
Queen bees are kept in a cage at the start of a new bee colony. There are several reasons why a queen came in a cage.
During Transportation Of Nuc To Hive
While you are purchasing a new Nuc of bees from elsewhere. The seller will send you the Nuc with the queen in a small cage with some attendants. This is to provide extra safety to the queen.
During transportation, the queen bee is kept protected. As she is the heart of the colony she shouldn’t die.
Also, during nuc to hive transportation, some bees can die. It’s common and it’s natural. But the queen should be protected and she shouldn’t get injured. This is why she is kept in the cage.
To Introduce A New Queen On A Queenless Hive
It’s common that sometimes a hive can become queenless. The queen can die due to various reasons. But the queenless hive won’t survive if a new queen isn’t raised within a few days.
In this situation, the beekeeper needs to purchase a new queen and introduce her to the colony. But the worker bees might not accept her suddenly.
So, the queen is kept in a cage for a few days. When the workers accept the queen, they will chew the cage plug. The queen will be removed from the cage and lead the colony.
To Raise Multiple Queen In The Same Hive
A queen won’t allow another queen in the same hive. But sometimes beekeepers need to raise 2 queens in the same hive. This is to split a beehive into 2 separate hives. Or to requeen a queenless hive.
So, to raise the new queen one of the 2 queens was kept in a cage. To ensure that the old queen can’t kill the new one.
How Long Can A Queen Bee Live In A Cage?
Queen bees can live up to 10 days in a cage without any care provided. Depending on the type of bee and care provided to her, the duration can vary from 6 to 14 days. She will survive as long as she has proper food. If she doesn’t have any food she will die within less than 24 hours.
The queen is the only reproductive woman in the colony. Also, pheromones released by her control the activity of the colony. So, she required more food and care compared to other members of the colony.
If she doesn’t get food for a few hours, she might die. Even if she gets food after a few hours she will become weaker.
The survival of the caged queen also depends on attendants bees. If there are a lot of attendants bees have already died, there is a high chance the queen will also die.
I have been getting caged queen quiet a lot of times. I have seen that sometimes queens die on 6th day when I haven’t provided any care to them. Sometimes I also found 1 or 2 attendants had died but the queen was still alive on the 10th day.
I also noticed that when I provided care for the queen she survived 14 days in the cage. I haven’t kept Queen so far more than 14 days in a cage.
Surprisingly you can keep a queen alive in a cage even for a month. Because I heard one of my neighbor beekeepers kept the queen in a cage for 32 days with proper care. But obviously, it’s gonna be a worst practice for us.
The more she is kept in a cage the more she will become weaker day by day. You know a weak queen means a weaker colony.
So, release her as early as possible. If possible introduce her to the colony within a weak for best beekeeping practices.
Can A Queen Bee Die In a Queen Cage?
Of course! Queen Bee can die in a cage due to stress, shortage of food, and due to it’s surrounding environment. If the queen is kept in a cage for long she will die.
The queen would die if all the attendants had died or if no food was provided to her for long. She can also die because of a cold or harsh environment.
How Long Can a Mated Queen Live In a Cage
A mated queen may live up to 10 days in a cage. If you can’t provide care for her she will die within a short duration of time. Her survival totally depends on the food storage and care provided her.
I kept the mated queen in a cage for a maximum of 10 days. I have seen the broods from a mated caged queen who kept for a shorter duration in the cage were stronger than those who kept for a longer time.
Will Bees Feed A Queen In A Cage?
Worker bees will feed a queen in a cage if the queen is from their own colony. But if the queen is introduced from another colony, initially bees won’t accept her. So, they won’t feed her.
But if the colony doesn’t have any queen without her. Then within a few days, worker bees will accept her and will start feeding her.
How do I Care a Caged Queen?
When I got a queen in a cage I always try to release her as early as possible. But as I have a large no. of hives sometimes I can’t do so.
When I failed to introduce the caged queen to a colony I provide proper care for her. Here is how I care for a caged queen.
- I usually kept a caged queen in a dark, warm, and draft-free place. Most of the time I kept the queen cage in my drawer to ensure such an environment. If you are doing so make sure your drawer has ventilation whole to ensure oxygen for the queen.
- I provide a drop of sugar water 2 times daily. I mix sugar and water and then with my fingertips, I provide a drop of sugar water into the cage. Don’t put too much sugar water inside the cage. Excess water will stress the queen and attendance which might be harmful.
- When I see one or two attendants have died I remove them from the cage. You shouldn’t also be worried if all the attendants have died but the queen is alive. It’s totally okay as the attendants survive very short periods of time.
- When I have time and chance I try to release the queen as early as possible within 10 days.
I already mentioned with proper care I kept the queen in a cage for a maximum of 14 days. But keeping the queen in a cage for long is obviously not a good practice. Always try to release her within a week.
When To Release The Queen From The Cage?
The caged queen should be released within 7 to 10 days. If you keep her in a cage for a long time she will become weak. So, she should be introduced to the colony at least within 7 to 10 days after she is caged.
Usually, queen bees came in a small plastic cage with a candy plug and some attendants. The candy plug is to feed her while she is kept in the cage. But as soon as the candy is over she requires food. Also, attendants will die within a few days.
If she doesn’t get food for 12 hours she probably gonna die. Also, the queen will become weaker if she doesn’t get food and care from the attendant’s bees.
The recovery process of a weak queen takes a long time. Also, there is no guarantee that she will be strong again. So, a caged queen should be introduced as soon as possible when she arrives. Don’t keep her in the cage for more than a week or two.
How Long Does It Take For Bees To Release Queen From Cage?
It actually depends on how long it takes for worker bees to accept the new queen. Usually, a queenless hive accepts a new queen within 48 hours to 72 hours. So, after that the worker will release the queen from the cage.
The queen came in a cage having a candy plug. When the caged queen is introduced to the colony, the worker won’t like her. Because the pheromone released by the different queens is different.
So, they might try to kill her. But the cage will protect the queen from them. The workers will get used to the pheromone released by the new queen. Then they will accept her. So, the queen will chew through the candy plug and release their new queen to the hive.
This process usually takes less than 48 hours to 72 hours. For some colonies, it can be less than 24 hours to even 4 days. Also, if the queen doesn’t get accepted by the colony. You might find her dead inside the cage within a few days.
How Do I Release A Caged Queen?
Usually, the queen is released by the worker bees automatically when they accept her. But sometimes depending on the cage worker might be unable to release her. In this situation, I have to manually release her. This usually includes the following common steps.
- Step-1: Adding Foods: First, when I assume that the candy inside the cage is not enough for the queen I add some food for her. You can put sugar syrup or cake or treacle on the cage. Make sure the food is not too much. A small amount of food is quite sufficient for her.
- Step-2: Don’t interrupt For 2 Days: In most cases, worker bees release the queen by chewing the candy plug. This can take 2 to 3 days. So, after introducing the queen to the hive, I usually do not open it for the next 2 to 3 days.
- Step-3: Check If The Worker Accepted Her Or Not: After 2 to 3 days I check whether the worker bees have accepted the queen or not. If I see worker bees swinging around the queen cage. They have eaten a portion of the queen cage. This means they accepted the queen. But they might be unable to eat the entire candy plug to remove the queen. In this case I release her on my own.
- Step-4: Open The Candy Plug: When I discover that the worker has accepted the queen. Then I release her on my own. Using my hive tool or by using a needle I open the candy plug. Then I place the queen cage inside the hive and close the hive.
That’s all! The queen will come out from the cage and will be adopted by the colony. Remember you shouldn’t keep the queen in a cage for more than a maximum of 10 days. Also, don’t release her until the worker shows symptoms of accepting her.
What If My Queen Bee Dies In A Cage?
In case the queen bee dies in a cage you have to remove her from the colony. Also, try to introduce a new queen.
As you know the queen is the main part of a colony. Without a queen, the colony won’t be able to survive for long. So, if your queen bee died in a cage try to requeen the hive as soon as possible.
Frequently Asked Questions
No, she can not survive alone. The Queen bee needs care all time from worker bees. She doesn't work to get her food. She also relays on drone bees for mating. She needs a continuous supply of food and attention. For which she depends on other bees. This is why a queen bee can not survive alone. Usually, 2 queen bees can not live together. But if you want to raise 2 queens on the same hive you should use a queen cage. When there is 2 queen in a hive they will fight with each other. Either 1 or both of the queens will die during this fight. If you put one of the queens in a cage then they can't fight each other. Make sure to keep them on two different frames. If the old queen can find the newly born queen she will kill her. Though the new queen is given birth by the present queen, still she kills her. Because no kingdom can't be ruled by 2 queens. So, to protect her reign she kills her own daughter. Beekeepers use a queen excluder to raise 2 queens in the same hive when they need it. The excluder usually came in a small plastic box. This effectively keeps the queens excluded from each other.Can A Queen Bee Survive Alone?
Can 2 Queen Bees Live Together?
What Happens When Two Queen Bees Are Born?