Today we are celebrating both our Mom's and our Queen Bees for Mother's Day. Below is a pretty awesome interview with Bee Expert Mr. Dan, from BeeWeaver.   We share - Why a Hive is not a Home Without a Queen.

So first let’s talk about the queen in the hive. Could you give a bit of background info on that?

The Queen honey bee is the Mother of all the bees in a colony.  If one wants to find another example in nature for how crucial Mothers are in our lives and society there are few better places to look than to look at the Queen in a honey bee colony.  

Awesome, I want to take a closer look at some of those examples, so how do they compare?

Queen honey bees are the source of social organization in the hive, just as our own Mothers are central to our family life in our own homes.

Without the queen the organization of the hive collapses into chaos, much as our own home life would devolve into anarchy without Mom. Queenless colonies become disorganized, less productive, cluttered and less clean, more vulnerable to disruption, and without a Queen the hive eventually falls apart.  

Interesting, I know that anytime my mom leaves for a trip we barely make it to school on time, (sorry dad), So I’d hate to imagine what it’s like when the mom of tens of thousands of bees is gone!

Exactly, and just as we honor our Mothers on the second Sunday of May, the Queen’s daughters celebrate Mother's Day too.  But every day is Mother's Day for the Queen! Bees offer constant gifts of love and care to their Mother, including special food, constant attention and grooming, as well as neurological stimulation. Bees also protect their Queen, much as we do our Mothers, guarding her against threats posed by colony intruders and other dangers.

I like that. It must be nice to be a Queen…and a Mom. What’s it like for the bees in the hive, are they happy? 

Queens keep their hives happy.  Our homes seem empty and sad when Mom is not around.  Likewise, a hive without a queen is an unhappy place where there is competition and struggling among the offspring.  Much as our own Mothers quell fighting among siblings and make sure everyone helps around the house, The Queen literally keeps the hive humming. A hive without a Queen buzzes at a different frequency - sounding more like a whine than a hum.  In fact, bees without queens, tend to be angrier, sting more, and they don’t spend as much time doing their own jobs in the hive.

Wow,  I definitely learned a lot interviewing you today and I hope everyone else did too! I love my Mom.  She is my Queen. I encourage everyone to show their moms how special they are this Mother’s Day.  Doing something special for your mom on Mother’s Day? Snap a photo, Tag @MikailasBees with #ilovemyqueenbee to share how your mom is like your queen. Free Me & the Bees Lemonade for the first five tags.

This Mother's Day, remember: A Hive is not a home without a Queen

Dan is an expert bee keeper and the Founder of BeeWeaver.  BeeWeaver legacy reaches back over 130 years  in Central Texas.  For more information visit www.beeweaver.com