A New Technique for Marking Queen Bees ( Apis mellifera ) for Better Visibility and Easier Spotting

Slobodan Dolasevic (), Nikola Delic, Maja Petricevic, Tanja Keskic, Ratko Pavlovic, Jevrosima Stevanovic and Zoran Stanimirovic
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Slobodan Dolasevic: Institute for Animal Husbandry, Autoput Beograd-Zagreb 16, Zemun, 11080 Belgrade, Serbia
Nikola Delic: Institute for Animal Husbandry, Autoput Beograd-Zagreb 16, Zemun, 11080 Belgrade, Serbia
Maja Petricevic: Institute for Animal Husbandry, Autoput Beograd-Zagreb 16, Zemun, 11080 Belgrade, Serbia
Tanja Keskic: Institute for Animal Husbandry, Autoput Beograd-Zagreb 16, Zemun, 11080 Belgrade, Serbia
Ratko Pavlovic: Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Belgrade, Studentski trg 12–16, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia
Jevrosima Stevanovic: Department of Biology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bul. Oslobodjenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia
Zoran Stanimirovic: Department of Biology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bul. Oslobodjenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia

Agriculture, 2025, vol. 15, issue 6, 1-12

Abstract: While marking queens is an optional rather than mandatory technique, it is increasingly becoming a standard practice in modern beekeeping. Finding queens in strong colonies and large apiaries is a time-consuming process. The visible and durable marking of the queen enables it to be seen more quickly, directly improving productivity in apiary management. This study examined a new technique for marking queens using an oil-based marker, which involved marking not only the thorax (as a standard technique) but also the wings and abdomen. The durability of the marking was assessed by measuring color retention at the start of the experiment and after five months. Two groups of queens were formed: an experimental group, marked with the new technique on three body parts—Group O ( n = 12) and a control group of unmarked queens—Group N ( n = 12). The most durable color retention was observed on the thorax (54.4%) and abdomen (14.4%), while retention on the wings was weaker (2.4%), necessitating reapplication during the season. Considering the proportion of the total marked area, abdomen marking gave better results (9.5%) compared to the thorax (5.4%) and wings (0.6%) marking. The application of this marking technique showed no negative effects on queen acceptance, survival, or supersedure. Marking three body parts can increase the queen’s visibility in a non-invasive way, improving work efficiency.

Keywords: queen marking; queen visibility; beekeeping practice (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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