# Queen laying two eggs per cell



## standman (Mar 14, 2008)

Multiple eggs in a cell can mean a laying worker situation, but I don't know enough particulars to make a determination. I am sure someone with more knowledge will make a suggestion. Requeening will fix a lot of problems.


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## honeyshack (Jan 6, 2008)

1. how much space do they have? If the queen is out of space she might lay more eggs in a cell.
or
2. Maybe this queen is a new queen that just started laying. Sometimes when they just start laying there is more than one egg in a cell, until she gets her rythme(sp). 
If there is not many eggs, just capped brood, they might have requeened themselves.


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## shawnd (Oct 15, 2006)

How old is the hive? How long has the queen been in the hive?


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## NDnewbeek (Jul 4, 2008)

The hive was established last year - with the current queen. So it isn't a virgin or new queen problem. The hive was my most productive and went into winter with more bees than any of my other hives. They have plenty of room - there are 3 fully drawn frames that are entirely empty in the hive.


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## jeff123fish (Jul 3, 2007)

did you see the queen? if not this can be a sign of a laying worker? Was there alot of drone brood as workers can only lay drone brood?


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## honeyshack (Jan 6, 2008)

How do you know that it is the same queen? Is it marked?


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## NDnewbeek (Jul 4, 2008)

honeyshack,

THAT is a good point that I did not think of. The initial queen was not marked and neither is this one - I assumed that it is the same queen. However, one more piece of information that might be important: when I inspected the hive for the first time this year (maybe 4 weeks ago), I found a supercedure cell, alone - with no bees around it, on an outside frame. When I opened the cell, there was a nearly fully developed, dead queen in it. So it appears as though they at least tried to supercede her last year. Perhaps they actually did at the end of the year, she was poorly mated and now is a weak layer?

I am getting queens in three weeks, so I am planning on replacing her, I would just like them to build up a little better before then!

(Jeff - I have seen the queen as recently as yesterday, and there are no drone cells in the hive).


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## honeyshack (Jan 6, 2008)

you will know if she is a poor queen in a week or so. Her laying patern will not improve, and she will produce more drones than layers. I am leaning towards her being a new queen. 
Reasons
two eggs per cell, classic newly mated thing
capped brood, means there was one coming out of winter
no larva, queenless for a time 
few eggs, sporatic on a frame, just started laying or poor layer or she shut down due to a dearth. 
Before you requeen, in three weeks you will have your answer. There should be new frames of eggs, more capped brood, a laying pattern that is good or bad, an abundace of worker brood or drone brood.
These situations will give you a good idea what you have going on.
If you have a laying worker, three weeks is to late and you should give the hive a frame of eggs from a strong hive to let them make their own queen...but you saw your queen
edit:
I just saw where you are from, if your summer, fall, winter, spring were like ours, (just north of you) she might have requeened late. This could be good or bad, depending on the drones in the fall. I have many hives that requeened late in one bee yard. There was so much rain at the end of the summer the water was flooding them out. The hives are on pallets and the pallets were under water and water as far as the eye coud see. When i finally got into the hives in the end of September beginning of october, there was few eggs. They had all requeened. but because i was not able to get there when i was suppose to there was still alot of drones in the hives. I think that is the only reason some hives made it. That queen went crazy on layin in the fall. (we wrap by halloween to protect the hives from winter)

what is the capped brood pattern like...accounting for eggs hatching


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## NDnewbeek (Jul 4, 2008)

Well, the capped brood pattern is actually really good. There are three full frames of capped brood (all worker brood) in the hive. The patterns are solid and centered in the frames. But that has been the condition for the last month or so - it is as though she is able to maintain the hive, but not able to get to the next 'gear' (so to speak) and start building. Weird. 

But your supercedure idea is winning me over, the more I think about it! The commercial beeks pulled out of here around mid-November. According to my records - my last check of the hive (which was superficial - count frames of bees on the top, quick look at stores in the top box etc.) was 2 November. My last real, tear down, smoke 'em, check every frame inspection was 14 September. I don't have any notes about queen cells on that trip - so 2 months would be plenty of time for them to make some mischief!


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

A new queen often lays doubles for a few days. She should straighten out soon.

http://www.bushfarms.com/beesfallacies.htm#doubleeggs


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## Tom Davidson (Mar 20, 2012)

Would a less than one-year-old queen which over-wintered with great success (hive increased) lay two eggs in cells due to lack of room to lay, if she's been moved to a nuc box with two combs and three foundations? Just saw this from a "rock star" queen of mine this week. Tons of eggs, top to bottom with hardly any cells skipped, and then about a third of them had doubles. :scratch:


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## kaizen (Mar 20, 2015)

agree she is a new queen learning. if you requeen stick this one in a nuc with some frames and see how she does. you might have some good local stock if they overwintered AND made themselves a new queen.


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## Vance G (Jan 6, 2011)

THis thread is an antique with two people contributing I miss, but a queen that is really full of eggs will lay multiple eggs in the same cells if short of available prepped cells. The nurses eat the extras, it is no big problem.


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## Dejashel (Feb 16, 2016)

If the Queen has ample room to lay, this could be she's about to start failing. I had the same thing happen last summer with a Queen that had been spectacular early in the year. She started laying multiple eggs so I requeened the hive and put her in a Nuc. Within a month she stopped laying altogether.


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## Tom Davidson (Mar 20, 2012)

Thanks, Vance!


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## Michael Palmer (Dec 29, 2006)

Tom Davidson said:


> Would a less than one-year-old queen which over-wintered with great success (hive increased) lay two eggs in cells due to lack of room to lay,


Yes, I've seen it. I grafted from one a few years ago. She laid multiples in many cells, all grafting season...but not her daughters. Exactly why these queens lay multiples, I don't know.


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## Tom Davidson (Mar 20, 2012)

Thanks, Michael. Beekeeping gets stranger the more I do it!


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## Mike Gillmore (Feb 25, 2006)

Something else I've noticed ... in most of the "laying worker" colonies I've had there are multiple eggs in a cell and some of them are on the cell "walls". When I've had a new queen doubling up the extra eggs seem to always be on the bottom of the cell.


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## Tom Davidson (Mar 20, 2012)

That's a great tip, Mike, thanks. These were all on the bottom.


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## AugustC (Aug 7, 2013)

Sometimes young queens will lay more than one egg. If you saw the queen that "might" be a indicator that you are ok. If all the larva are being capped over as workers rather than drones than you are fine. If you are still not sure then if you have another hive then transfer a comb of eggs/young brood over. If your hive is queenless/queen failing then they will raise a new queen, if not they will cap it over. If you have a true laying worker situation there will usually be eggs everywhere 4 eggs per cell, laying in cells containing pollen etc etc see below









When this is the case it will take around three weeks of one comb of eggs a week before the laying workers are suppressed and a new queen is raised.


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