What Is a Mated Queen Bee?
A mated queen is a queen that has completed her mating flights and, in most cases, has begun laying eggs. Sellers usually ship or hand over queens in small cages with a few attendant worker bees. A “mated” or “laying” queen is different from a virgin queen (not yet mated) and from an unemerged queen cell. If you are curious about how mating happens, see natural mating and instrumental insemination.
Why Buy Rather Than Raise
Buying a queen is often the simplest option for beginners, for requeening a queenless or failing colony, or for starting a new colony from a split. Raising your own is rewarding but takes experience; see raising queen bees if you want to try. Yes, you can buy a queen, but a queen alone is not a colony. She needs workers and brood or a nucleus colony.
Where to Buy
- Local beekeepers or bee clubs, who may sell queens adapted to your area
- Commercial queen breeders, who ship by mail during the season
- Bee supply stores, which sometimes carry queens in spring
Local queens can be a good choice since stock adapted to your climate may overwinter better, though this is not guaranteed.
What Affects Cost
Prices vary with the seller, breed or line, time of year, shipping and whether the queen is marked or clipped. Commonly, mated queens cost somewhere in the tens of dollars each, but check current prices directly with sellers. Ordering early in the season generally helps with availability.
Buying Checklist
- Ask about the breed or stock (queen bee types compares them) and how the queen was mated (open mating or instrumental insemination).
- Ask whether she is laying and approximately how old she is.
- Confirm the shipping date and whether replacement is offered for dead-on-arrival queens.
- Ask about disease or inspection practices where relevant to your region.
When the Queen Arrives
- Open the package and check that the queen is alive and active.
- Keep the cage warm and out of direct sun, and avoid leaving it in a hot car.
- Introduce her promptly, typically by placing the cage in a queenless colony and letting workers release her through candy. Follow the supplier’s instructions.
- Check after several days to see whether she has been released and accepted, and look for eggs after a week or so. Our article on how to tell if a queen has mated lists what to look for.
A colony will often reject a queen if it still has a queen or queen cells, so remove the old queen and any cells beforehand. For more on cells, see queen cells.
Alternatives
If you want to hold queens before use, some beekeepers use mating nucs or a queen castle.
FAQ
Do bees have a queen?
Yes, a honey bee colony normally has one queen that lays the eggs.
Can you just buy a queen bee?
Yes, queens are sold by breeders and bee suppliers, usually in the beekeeping season.
How do I get a bee queen?
You can buy a mated queen, raise one from a young larva, or let a queenless colony raise its own.