EdAccelerator

A honeybee colony is one of nature's most organized societies, home to as many as 60,000 individuals working in perfect coordination. At the heart of every hive is the queen — the only bee capable of laying fertilized eggs. She can produce up to 2,000 eggs per day during peak season, and her pheromones regulate the behavior and mood of the entire colony. Without her chemical signals, workers become agitated and the hive falls into disarray. The queen is not a ruler who gives orders; rather, she is the biological anchor around which all colony life revolves. When a queen ages or dies, workers select several young larvae and feed them a special substance called royal jelly. This protein-rich secretion triggers the development of a new queen, ensuring the colony's survival. The first new queen to emerge will often sting and eliminate her rivals still developing in their cells.