# How tiny can a queen be?



## Terri (May 10, 2002)

Well, I gave one hive to a neighbor, and then my remaining hive swarmed, leaving 6 empty queen cells and only a few bees. As in maybe 4 dozen workers. I figured the hive was toast

Today I took it apart, freezing the empty combs to kill any pests. I noticed they are now down to 2 dozen worker bees. But, what is this???? They are feeding what looks to be a tiny, skinny black bee. In fact it is build like a queen but it is only as long as a regular worker bee. It has no fuzz, and it is built like a queen, but, WOW!

I am not sure but I think that is the queen that was left after the hive swarmed. If so, the hive is still probably hopeless, as there are not enough bees to support a hive and it looks like an early Fall. And, she is not doing a very good job of keeping her bees from drifting off.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

They can be pretty small about just a tad bigger than a worker. Go back in a week or two and see if she is laying any eggs, center of thre cells and all that. some times they are so mall they nearly dissapper in the cell to lay the egg.

. Al


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