In beekeeping class I stress the importance of being able to identify eggs that the queen has laid. A good pattern of eggs indicates the presence of a good queen and a healthy hive. In class it’s hard to show students eggs on a frame because they are so small and the light has to catch the frame just right – so I was happy that Thien captured this great shot of eggs and larvae that we can now reference in class. I like the way you can see the spectrum of worker bee development, from egg to larvae to capped brood as you move your eyes across the frame. It helps that I used a black foundation, specially made to help old eyes like mine spot the tiny eggs.
We also spotted plenty of beautiful pollen at the Big Oaks bee yard. I like the way the color of it stands out against that black foundation. A good pollen flow prompts the queen to lay eggs, which is good because we need plenty of young bees in these hives for them to survive the winter.
You’re right, very useful photos, what a great queenie you’ve got there.