Posted on 11/21/2025 7:23:50 AM PST by Red Badger
Queen bee standing on a supersedure cell (peanut-shaped structure, center). Within the supersedure cell is a new queen bee that the workers have reared as a replacement. Credit: Shelley Hoover
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New research reveals how viral infections in queen bees disturb colony stability and pinpoints a specific pheromone that may help preserve unity and productivity within hives.
It may sound like the plot of a medieval drama: a once-powerful ruler, weakened by illness, is overthrown by her own followers. In honey bee colonies, however, such dramatic power shifts are real—and they happen frequently, carrying both benefits and risks for the bees and the ecosystems that rely on them.
The process, known as supersedure, occurs when the thousands of worker bees in a colony detect that their queen is no longer laying enough eggs. In response, they work together to replace her with a younger, healthier queen. While this adaptation helps wild colonies survive, it can disrupt managed hives, creating pauses in egg-laying, smaller colony populations, and ultimately lower honey and pollination yields.
Researchers at the University of British Columbia have now uncovered new insights into what triggers these coordinated uprisings and how worker bees organize them with such precision.
How viral infections weaken queens
In a recent study published in PNAS, the research team discovered that common viral infections cause a queen’s ovaries to shrink, reducing her ability to lay eggs and to produce methyl oleate, a pheromone that normally maintains worker loyalty. When levels of this pheromone drop, the workers can detect the queen’s decline and begin preparing a replacement.
“A healthy queen can lay as many as 850 to 3,200 eggs per day, which is more than her whole body weight,” said senior author Dr. Leonard Foster, a professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at UBC’s Faculty of Medicine and Michael Smith Laboratories. “But in our experiments, virus-infected queens laid fewer eggs and produced less methyl oleate. That pheromone reduction seems to be the signal to workers that a queen is no longer fit to continue.”
Several supersedure cells on a honey bee frame indicate that the worker bees are rearing replacement queens. Credit: Shelley Hoover
Bees pollinate about one-third of the world’s crops, making them essential to healthy food systems, food security, and the health of people and communities worldwide.
Impacts on beekeeping and food systems
Beekeepers have been reporting problems with queen failure and premature supersedure for many years, with recent surveys identifying “poor queens” as the most frequently reported cause of overwintering losses.
The research highlights how viral infections are a driving factor behind these challenges, disrupting the delicate balance of chemical signals that maintain order in a hive.
Importantly, the findings also point to a practical way for beekeepers to intervene and manage supersedure. In proof-of-concept field trials, colonies given synthetic pheromone blends that included methyl oleate were much less likely to rear new queens compared to colonies that received blends without it.
“That could be a big deal for beekeepers,” said Dr. Foster. “Supersedure can be disruptive and costly, but supplementing colonies with methyl oleate could help stabilize hives during periods when continuous productivity is most important.”
The findings open the door to new management strategies for commercial beekeepers dealing with viral outbreaks, especially during periods of peak pollination or honey production to prevent untimely queen loss.
The hidden threat of varroa mites
“Our research really emphasizes how virus infections in queens can be a major problem for beekeepers,” said first author Dr. Alison McAfee, a research associate at UBC’s Michael Smith Laboratories and North Carolina State University. “Previous studies showed that failing queens were heavily infected with viruses, and now we know that those infections can lead to supersedure, which is risky for the colony and expensive for beekeepers to manage.”
Queen honey bee marked with a blue heart. Credit: Shelley Hoover
The research also highlights the role of varroa mites — parasitic pests that can spread the viruses linked to queen failure — underscoring the importance of keeping colonies healthy and parasite-free.
Queen infections are so far an underappreciated problem, said Dr. McAfee, who hopes that this research will change that.
“Keeping the queen healthy is one more reason why it is so critical to think ahead and keep varroa levels under control,” Dr. McAfee added. “There is currently no treatment for viruses in honey bee colonies, but now that we better understand their impact, we can change the way we manage varroa to give the queen a better chance.”
Reference:
“Elevated virus infection of honey bee queens reduces methyl oleate production and destabilizes colony-level social structure”
by Alison McAfee, Abigail Chapman, Armando Alcazar Magaña, Katie E. Marshall, Shelley E. Hoover, David R. Tarpy and Leonard J. Foster, 14 October 2025, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2518975122
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Bee menopause, who knew.
Buncha angry broads, and the queen’s the only one getting any action.
This seems like a bad idea. (I’m not a beekeeper but plan to give it a shot when I retire, so I’ve read a lot).
If the workers detect that the queen isn’t laying enough eggs they decide to replace her. AS THEY SHOULD. It’s about colony and gene survival at that point. (The avg lifespan of the worker bee is only 6 weeks!). If you spray this pheromone to trick the workers into thinking the queen is OK, that could lead to her not laying ANY eggs, and giving the workers no time to work on a new queen, leading to colony failure.
That’s what I understood from reading this post, any beekeepers get something else and can correct me?
That seems correct................
Found out queen is a democrat amd nagged too much.
The resilience of LIFE built into its design is amazing.
“And I can still hear her complain!”
Inspecting a hive and finding supersedure cells can place a beekeeper in a difficult position. I may leave one or two and continue to monitor the colony, but bees are meticulous and will build supersedure cells even in strong, healthy hives. Removing all of them risks leaving the colony without a queen if the current one fails.
It is more important to focus on swarm cells and manage the hive based on their presence. Once a swarm cell is built, the colony has usually made its decision.
Leave at least one supersedure cell and remove the swarm cells.
“When in the course of bee events...”
How much was spent on this. The queen’s job is reproduction. When she can’t do that she’s replaced. Is this ground breaking research??
It apparently has been happening much too frequently...............
This is what happens in a matrimonial society. In a patriarchy, the king just finds another babe to crank out kids. To quote Mel Brooks, “It’s good to be the king!”
matrimonial?..............matriarchal?......... 😁
“OOOOPS! Still, it’s good to be the king!”
Not in a bee kingdom!...............
BRAVE AI:
Male bees, known as drones, have a singular purpose within a honeybee hive: to mate with a virgin queen bee.
They do not perform tasks such as foraging for nectar or pollen, producing honey, building comb, or defending the hive.
Drones are larger than worker bees, have bigger compound eyes, and lack a stinger.
They are fed by worker bees and spend their lives waiting for the queen’s mating flight, which typically occurs in the spring or early summer.
During the mating flight, the queen flies to a drone congregation area where she mates with multiple drones in mid-air.
The mating process is fatal for the drone: his endophallus is ripped from his body during insemination, causing immediate death.
The queen can mate with up to 20 drones during her flight and stores their sperm in her spermatheca for the rest of her life, using it to fertilize eggs.
After mating season ends, drones are no longer needed. As winter approaches and resources become scarce, worker bees expel the remaining drones from the hive.
This is done by either starving them or physically pushing them out, often with their wings bitten off.
Once outside, drones cannot survive the cold and either starve or freeze to death.
This behavior ensures the colony conserves food and space during the winter months.
Drones contribute to the colony’s genetic diversity by passing on their genes to future queens, which is essential for the long-term health and survival of the hive.
Despite their short lives and lack of labor, drones play a vital role in the reproductive cycle of the colony.
“Maybe because she’s a bitch”
(I said that once to my girlfriend’s sister when they were dumbfounded that a “regular” guy dumped a beautiful celebrity actress a while back.)
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