A behind the scenes look at what it takes to make an artificially inseminated VSH breeder queen at Lloyd St. Bees
As a honey bee researcher, I believe in science. The data provides us with the truth. Without consistency, repeatability and data, we cannot make informed management decisions. As a beekeeper, I use applied science and scientific methods to solve practical problems. Just because something works in a lab, does not mean that it will work in the field. The breeding program I have created is rooted in the solution of practical problems that we encounter every day in the field and utilizes verified methods in selection to help solve these problems. The results of this applied science this producing colonies that can better manage varroa by utilizing the VSH (varroa sensitive hygiene) trait and having increased overwinter survival in a northern climate. We see these results in our bee yards every spring. This allows us to continually have surplus overwintered and spring nucs available for our customers.
As a beekeeper, I use applied science and scientific methods to solve practical problems.
When we talk with folks that produce queens, we have been getting a lot of questions about how our inseminated queens are produced. We thought it might be helpful to explain the steps it takes to produce an artificially inseminated VSH queen. We think most of you will be surprised to hear how long this process takes and the number of steps involved. Keep in mind when you read this that we only have about three months to complete all this work since our operation is located in Wisconsin. Being the only northern VSH artificially inseminated breeder queen supplier has it’s challenges with our short season. Most of the insemination work is done at night after the daily tasks of nuc and open mated queen work is done for the day. During the spring and summer, we literally work around the clock to squeeze everything in.
Panning for genetic gold
To create spring breeder queens for the current year, we start working on our breeder selection to see who will provide the genetics the year before. We use the selection criteria of alcohol washes, workability/temperament, productivity and winter survival to determine which colonies are worthy of being considered entry into the breeder fold. Keep in mind that we subject ALL our colonies to these requirements in order to get a clear picture of what our operation looks like each season. No matter how great their marks are, if a colony cannot survive winter then they are useless. If we hadn’t set the bar high enough for these colonies already, we also run those colonies with low to no mites without treatment all year. This untreated group size is about 75% of our stock every season. The following spring, surviving colonies that have shown their ability are given a deeper look.
This group size can vary but typically this is around the top 25% of
colonies in the operation. These colonies are checked again to see how well they came through our cold and long winter, just surviving is not enough. Out of the best, we select which colonies have a good temperament and growth again. These colonies then reach a point where they can be selected to receive the VSH assay that Dr. Harbo developed along with additional testing we learned from the USDA and other contributors. This whole process is repeated every season in our operation. Stock selection is a never-ending process and must be maintained if you want to keep having consistent or improved results.
To create spring breeder queens for the current year, we start working on our breeder selection to see who will provide the genetics the year before.
Drones are the king for a day
At this point in the process, we group the best colonies. These colonies are sorted into those which will be used for grafting and those which will provide drones. Open mated colonies can be a good source of drone stock because they can easily carry themselves through the season with little assistance from the beekeeper once the selection process is over.
Once drone production is completed in a large number, we can begin the insemination process. We harvest drones in the late spring/summer from many colonies to collect the semen we will require to inseminate the virgin queens we have been banking in preparation. Once all the pieces are in order, we begin collecting the semen one microliter (one millionth of a liter) at a time. Since semen collection can vary between drones, some of them not yielding anything, it takes about 20 drones on average to inseminate a single queen. Lucky for us, a single drone frame in a colony can yield up to 3K drones. We find that seven to ten microliters of semen is enough to provide the queen with the genetic material to have a good career with a colony.
Post Insemination
After the insemination is complete, the queens are tagged with a colored and numbered disk. This identification corresponds with our logbook that records what colony provided the queen and which colonies provided the drones. The queens are then returned to the bank to await their big day of colony introduction.
After enough time has passed for us to ensure that the insemination went successfully and that the risk of death by infection is minimal, they are installed into a nuc using a push in cage. Once the queens have begun to lay, we release the queens. When the queens have shown their ability to lay worker brood, they are divided into groups that will be shipped to customers who want spring AI VSH breeder queens. A portion of each group is saved to be overwintered. The following spring, these will be sent out to customers that placed orders for overwintered breeder queens.
Breeder Maintenance
We find that some AI queens express VSH to such a high level that they need beekeeper intervention to keep them going. We don’t mind this because open mated daughters that are raised from this stock bring this trait back into balance and provide superior resistance. It’s not uncommon to find that other AI queens can head a productive colony that produces surplus honey for years. Overall, we must remind ourselves that these AI breeders are a tool to be used towards trait selection. Their high expression of these traits might be a detriment to their survival without our help, the daughters they produce will actually clarify how well our breeding efforts have been.
Trust us with your stock selection
This system allows us to keep enough artificially inseminated VSH breeder queens on hand for our own use as well as a surplus to share with beekeepers like yourself reading this right now. We offer overwintered artificially inseminated breeder queens because it allows the customer to purchase a proven product. This is important for folks here in the north because we can graft with the confidence that this stock has survived the bottleneck of winter. We hope that now that you understand the work and care the goes into our breeder queens, that you can trust us with the stock selection for your apiary.
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