Oh , the sweet , misunderstood lagger . To the away observer , the female honeybee ’s male counterpart is likely a lazy , freeloading core . But the lagger ’s role is actually critical for the wellness and strength of theentirespecies .
How Can That Be?
The poke ’s primary job is to mate withvirgin king . If he is successful , he ascertain the continuation of his own genetic material , thus strengthening the species ofApis mellifera . What does that look like ? The substantial hives bring forth the strongest drone , and those drones strike out on their own to twin with virgin faggot . If he successfully arrives at a monotone faithful area , and mates with a queen ( it happens mid - air ! ) , she will then take his genetics back to her mother hive ( among other poke ’ sperm ) . There , she spearheads a colony with those laggard ’ transmitted fabric , to raise the next generation of Apis mellifera — including immature fresh drones — to continue the cycle in the years to trace .
Then Why Does The Drone Get A Bad Rap?
Well , for starters , he does n’t pull his weight around the hive . drone pipe do n’t participate in any work in the beehive : no brood rearing , no cleaning , no foraging , nohoneymaking , no defense — nothing . What ’s more , trailer use up treasured resources in the room of pollen and honey , while offering nothing back to their mother colony in paying back .
So, Drones Hang Out, Get Free Food and Protection Without Working for It?
More or less . The day pass in the beehive before sexual union are rather … relaxed . But a drone ’s end is quite striking , whether he mates or not . Drones think up during a coupling stop in the yr will fly out and make poke congregation areas ( or DCAs ) with other drones from other colonies . There , they wait for a virgin queen to join them , where she ’ll copulate with about a 12 different drone . For those drone , coitus is the last action they ’ll take part in . The male honeybee sex pipe organ is much like the stinger of the female : Once he successfully mate and flies forth , it is torn from his soundbox and his life concludes .
What Happens to the Drones That Don’t Mate?
Good question . The drones that are hatched too lately in the year or never leave the beehive to twin end up remain in thehiveunder the care of their sisters until the close of the season . As the atmospheric condition cools and the colony hunkers down for the winter , the drones are kick out of the hive . The distaff honeybee recognise that winter is a precarious time for survival , and they need all helpful workforce on deck to come out of the last . They also realize ( in their own tiny honeybee way ) that drone pipe are no longer needed for the year . In the spring , if the settlement survives , the queen will get ripe to work on laying new workeranddrone brood .
