Queen acceptance cage.

[Alleyyooper]

I had been running SMR Caronilons Queens every since I started splitting my own hive for increases and buying queens. One year I couldn't get all the SNR stock I wanted so bought 6 of the straight black carnies. Out of that 6 I lost 5 in 4 days. the 6th I got to just before she made the release and pulled her from the nuc. I took a deep frame with about 50% honey and 50% open cells made a screen box out of 1/8 inch hardware cloth that fit the frame bending the edges so I could press it in the comb and leave room inside for the queen. I put her in it and put her back in the hive. I released her 10 days later and she was finally excepted.






Never had a problem getting a black queen excepted again.



   Al

[iddee]

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[Jen]

I've haven't seen the black queens before, she is beautiful!

[Alleyyooper]

My home made outfit worked just fine. I have had no problems with my own cell punch raised queens being excepted.

Ya the black beauty is pretty but hard to find in the hive for some reason when the boss demands to see her.
My yellow tail Karenolions are easier to find.





   Al

[LazyBkpr]

Yellow tail Carniolans...     

[Alleyyooper]

No the Carniolans are black, well ones I have seen.
My queens are yellow tail Karniolans since they are from SMR stock and mutt drone breed.

    Al

[LazyBkpr]

AHhhh, ok, I thought you were yanking the collective chain.   

[Alleyyooper]

When I raise them I could call them what ever I wanted.

   Al

[Bakersdozen]

   Al

Alleyyooper:  I am confused.  What type of queen is she?

Interestingly enough I just replaced a queen that looked just like this one with a dark little queen.  The replacement looks like the first picture of a dark queen.   I couldn't bear to give the old queen the Anne Boleyn treatment and put her in a nuc with a few frames.  That actually was a pretty good plan as the colony took a week to accept the new dark queen.  I thought I might have to bring the big old queen out of retirement because the new  little black queen wasn't being accepted.  The little dark queen did eventually walk into the hive when I released her.  They didn't want any part of her for the longest and I feared she would die in that cage. 
We have had nothing but rain and I am anxious to see how the new little dark queen is doing.

[Bakersdozen]

Here's a picture of the queen I moved out of the colony.  What type is she?

[Alleyyooper]

Like I said I started with a SMR Caronilons Queen, used the cell punch method. Then placed the nuc about a mile from a yard where we had MUTT stock swwarms and cut out stuff and I was useing about half a deep of drone comb in it rearing drones to mate my new queens. I would be willing to bet that over the years I don't have much of the SMR Caronilons in the DNA. Still they are real good queens.


   Al

[Marion]

This may seem like a dumb question, but when the bees raise their own queen is there any problem with them accepting her? I have heard that if there are more than one queen cells, the first queen hatched will kill the other one. Should I worry about the rest of the bees killing the survivor?

I just made my first split and I have 2 queen cells forming on the side of the frame. I was planning on just leaving them alone and a queen will emerge from it.

[efmesch]

No questions are dumb---unless they aren't asked.
You're right on the first and have no need  to fear on the second.
Except for swarming season, If a hive raises more than one queen, the first one out will eliminate her potential competitors while they are still confined to their cells.  She nibbles away at the base of the still closed queen cell and kills her with a sting.  The bees clean away the remains.
However, once a  mature virgin queen has emerged successfully from her cell  she's got it made.  Even when she goes out on her mating flights, she's always accepted back in the hive with no resistance---more correctly, she's welcomed back into the hive by the bees that were anxious while she was away.

[Marion]

Thank you, efmesch. Now I can relax.

[LazyBkpr]

Well explained Ef..

   I think Alley was facilitating a new name for his mutts like I do for my American Tiger queens..
   In this day and age, color doesnt mean a pure strain.. the DARK queens are usually of Carniolan or russian origin, with Russians occasionally having a dark tiger stripe appearance. Other bees of Italian background are usually golden in color..
   The queen you have in the picture Bakers looks almost bronze, as opposed to golden or black.. But its hard to tell for sure.. might even be this old laptop.    I would say she is a mutt derived from Italian bees as my best guess..