The Drone
The drones are male bees; they possess no sting, are more hairy and larger than the common bee, and may be easily distinguished by their heavy motion, thick-set form, and louder humming. Evans thus describes the drones:—
“Their short proboscis sips
No luscious nectar from the wild thyme’s lips;
From the lime leaf no amber drops they steal,
Nor bear their grooveless thighs the foodful meal:
On others’ toils, in pampered leisure, thrive
The lazy fathers of the industrious hive;
Yet oft, we’re told, these seeming idlers share
The pleasing duties of parental care;
With fond attention guard each genial cell,
And watch the embryo bursting from the shell.”
But Dr. Evans had been “told” what was not correct when he sought to dignify drones with the office of “nursing fathers,”—that task is undertaken by the younger of the working bees. No occupation falls to the lot of the drones in gathering honey, nor have they the means provided them by Nature for assisting in the labours of the hive. The drones are the progenitors of working bees, and nothing more; so far as is known, that is the only purpose of their short existence.
In a well-populated hive the number of drones is computed at from one to two thousand. “Naturalists,” says Huber, “have been extremely embarrassed to account for the number of males in most hives, and which seem only a burden to the community, since they appear to fulfil no function. But we now begin to discern the object of Nature in multiplying them to such an extent. As fecundation cannot be accomplished within the hive, and as the queen is obliged to traverse the expanse of the atmosphere, it is requisite that the males should be numerous, that she may have the chance of meeting some one of them in her flight. Were only two or three in each hive, there would be little probability of their departure at the same instant with the queen, or that they would meet her in their excursions; and most of the females might thus remain sterile.” It is important for the safety of the queen-bee that her stay in the air should be as brief as possible: her large size and slowness of flight render her an easy prey to birds. It is not now thought that the queen always pairs with a drone of the same hive, as Huber seems to have supposed. The drone that happens to be the selected husband is by no means so fortunate as at first sight may appear, for it is a law of nature that the bridegroom does not survive the wedding-day. Her majesty, although thus left, a widowed, is by no means a sorrowful, bride, for she soon becomes the happy mother of a large family. It cannot be said that she pays no respect to the memory of her departed lord, for she never marries again. Once impregnated,—as is the case with most insects,—the queen-bee continues productive during the remainder of her existence. It has, however, been found that though old queens cease to lay worker eggs, they may continue to lay those of drones. The swarming season being over,—that is about the end of July,—a general massacre of the “lazy fathers” takes place. Dr. Bevan, in the “Honey Bee,” observes on this point: “The work of the drones being now completed, they are regarded as useless consumers of the fruits of others’ labour; love is at once converted into hate, and a general proscription takes place. The unfortunate victims evidently perceive their danger, for they are never at this time seen resting in one place, but darting in and out of the hive with the utmost precipitation, as if in fear of being seized.”
Their destruction is thought, by some, to be caused by their being harassed until they quit the hive; but Huber says he ascertained that the death of the drones was caused by the stings of the workers. Supposing the drones come forth in May, which is the average period of their being hatched, their destruction takes place somewhere about the commencement of August, so that three months is the usual extent of their existence; but should it so happen that the usual development of the queen has been retarded, or that the hive has by chance been deprived of her, the massacre of the drones is deferred. In any case, the natural term of the life of drone-bees does not exceed four months, so that they are all dead before the winter, and are not allowed to be useless consumers of the general store.