A beehive depends on its queen for survival and she is cared for by humans, as well as her own family.
There is only one queen bee per bee colony, and she is the one who lays the eggs and keeps it functioning as a unit. Philip McCabe chair of the Meath Beekeepers Association explains how the worker bees care for their queen,
Keep her clean, dress her up, giving her food.
Pollen is collected by bees as they fly from one flowering plant to another foraging for food. On their return to the hive, it is used to feed their young. The bees also use pollen to make royal jelly.
Both honeybees and wild bees are essential to agriculture, as they pollinate crops such as fruit and vegetables.
A healthy queen means a healthy hive, so the beekeeper must pay particular attention to her. At An Grianán in County Louth, Philip McCabe demonstrates one aspect of queen bee care. It involves marking the queen with a dab of paint,
I'll be able to pick her out from 60,000 bees when I want to find her.
This episode of 'Wildtrack’ was broadcast on 7 December 1994. The reporter is Derek Mooney.
