Examine the queen for injury, disease, or aging

Locate the queen and examine her for physical damage (torn wings, missing legs), deformities (small or misshapen abdomen), and signs of disease such as deformed wing virus symptoms. Check her laying pattern: a healthy queen produces a solid, compact brood pattern with few empty cells, while a failing queen leaves a scattered, shotgun pattern.

Why It Works

Non-swarming queen cells are the colony's response to a queen whose pheromone output or egg-laying has declined below threshold. Identifying the specific issue (injury, age, disease, poor mating) determines whether the colony can resolve the problem through natural supersedure or whether beekeeper intervention such as requeening is needed.

Tips

• A queen with a reduced abdomen relative to her thorax may be running low on stored sperm
• Bald or darkened queens are often older (2+ years) and likely candidates for supersedure
• If the queen looks healthy but brood is spotty, suspect poor mating or viral infection
• Use a magnifying glass to check for varroa mites on the queen's thorax, which can reduce her laying performance