Trevor asks:
What were your figures for the amount of eggs laid in a 24 hour period?

My research only involved a small number of hives but over a long period of
time.
I checked once a week by putting the queen on a empty drawn comb with a
special queen excluder on both sides. Removed her 24 hours later and counted
eggs.

Exact figures (except for the highest egg count in 24 hours ) are of little
importance.

I did find that the  queen laid in proportion with the circumstances  of the
hive except for swarm queens. The Italian queens were the most prolific I
found but also the line I tested the most.

I was amazed to find swarm queens would lay eggs on sheets of foundation
completely ignoring the looking into a cell and then depositing an egg. I
believe this fact  is one of the main reasons a swarm always seems to expand
so fast. Workers are  always trying  to keep pace with the swarm queen which
may have only been doing an average job before leaving with the swarm. Most
swarm queens  are  old queens .

First year swarm queens had the highest egg production in 24 hours. I had
one lay over 2500 eggs in 24 hours.

I have often puzzled why a queen I have been watching (counting eggs per day
and watching swarm preparations and the queen stopping laying in swarm
preparation)  was only laying a certain number of eggs per day. Then swarm
to one of my Peach trees ( swarms love peach trees) and when hived on
foundation almost *double* eggs per day  in the new hive on foundation!

 To answer Trevor's question
I never had a queen lay 3,000 eggs a day as many have said but not saying
queens don't or can not. Would be 125 eggs laid per hour or approx. 2 eggs
per minute around the clock.

I did find many  which would lay 1500 eggs in 24 hours which would be
approx. 65 eggs per hour or one per minute.

One reason for low egg production for many of the queens was being picky
about the cleanliness of cells, going over areas they had already laid eggs
in looking in each cell AGAIN , being groomed by attendants  and simply
wondering around the comb. I have seen queens simply sit in a place for a
long time.

These are only my observations. I  do not believe Wyatt Mangum which writes
for ABJ is on BEE-L but believe his observations on the subject would be
interesting as I was amazed the last time we talked on the phone the number
of observation hives he watches every day.

I think others which have looked at  queens and egg laying would provide
interesting information for the list and may have seen very different egg
production in their research.

Researchers care to comment?

The above was taken in hives nearing full size and with a flow on or being
fed.

Bob

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