Bee facts!

Queens only mate once in their lives, shortly after they’re born. (And typically do not mate inside the hive) After emerging and murdering any competition, the queen bee will begin her mating flights. During these flights she will attempt to mate with somewhere around 20 different drones to collect their genetic material. Allegedly, drones from her own hive will fly at a different altitude than her to help prevent her from inbreeding with her own hive. She will use the genetic material from those mating flights the rest of her life (which is usually a few years). I’ve been told that, if she does inbreed with a drone, that the worker bees may be able to detect the bad genetics and they will evict any larva that she lays using that genetic material.

Bonus fact: when mating the drones leave their “appendage” in the queen and die shortly after. The next drone will remove the appendage and repeat the process. I haven’t experienced it but, during these bee orgies, you can hear the popping sounds of this happening.

but the sons don’t work(?)