Introduction Cage in use Inside of cage showing entrance on the bottom left	Queen Bee Introduction Cage. Introducing queen bees is a notoriously hit and miss affair dependant on many variables such as the state of the colony, the state of the weather and the state of the queen. Some of this is under the beekeeper's control so firstly ensure the colony is queenless and without queen cells. Queen introduction is also more successful if the colony is fed 50:50 sugar syrup prior to and during the introduction process. It has also been shown that the success rate is increased if the queen is introduced to young workers - 'nurse bees' will feed a new queen when older bees are likely to attack her. The success rate is further increased if the queen is in a state of laying eggs or 'in lay'. Queen bees that have been sent in the post in a travelling cage are, naturally, 'off lay' because they have nowhere to lay eggs until they have been released. The 4 spikes and cap that are attached to the cage should be removed and assembled in position before use. In one corner of the cage there is a peg which must be removed; it blocks the entrance to the space for filling with fondant/candy. Find a comb containing emerging bees (from another colony if necessary) and shake or brush off all the bees. The next operation can be done either in the apiary or indoors. Release the queen onto the comb where bees are emerging (preferably in an area of the comb that also contains pollen cells but not essential) and immediately place the cage over her (push the cage spikes securely into the comb so there are no gaps between the cage and comb) or, alternatively, push the cage onto the comb first and then introduce the queen through the capped hole. Replace the comb in the hive ensuring there is a bee space between the cage and neighbouring comb. In the cage, emerging bees will immediately start to tend the queen and at the same time provide empty cells for the queen to lay eggs. Within 2 days the fondant/candy should have been eaten away by the hive bees and the queen will be released already 'in lay' although it is recommended not to disturb the colony for 7-10 days when the cage can be removed. Go to Online Shop
This webpage was last updated 1 February 2012 and it took ages!

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