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From: dmk@bunker.UUCP (David M. Knight)
Newsgroups: net.singles
Subject: Bee Genetics
Message-ID: <281@bunker.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 21-Sep-83 13:25:32 EDT
Article-I.D.: bunker.281
Posted: Wed Sep 21 13:25:32 1983
Date-Received: Wed, 21-Sep-83 23:52:37 EDT
Lines: 38


There is a process called Parthenogenesis in which
an unfertilized egg will, in fact, grow and prosper.
No sperm is involved. 

from Websters New Coll. Dict.: 

	parthenogenesis - reproduction by development of
	an unfertilized gamete that occurs esp. among lower 
	plants and invertibrate animals.

	gamete: a mature germ cell possessing a haploid
	chromosome set and capable of initiating formation of
	a new individual by fusion with another gamete.

	haploid: having the gametic number oh chromosomes or
	half the number characteristic of somatic cells :
	MONOPLOID -- haploid.

All the chromosomes in drone bees come from one 
parent - the queen - and, thus, haploid individuals.

Because of this, there is no variation whatsoever 
in the sperms from one drone.

One of the maladies from which bee hives suffer is  that of 
"laying workers"  where worker bee(s) lay unfertilized eggs which 
develop into drones. Worker bees are undeveloped females
which are incapable of mating. 

The queen uses sperm only to fertilize the eggs which 
are destined to be female worker/queens.

If anyone is interested in further information, most encyclopedias
have a decent discussion of parthenogenesis.  Also, most
relatively complete references on beekeeping discuss this aspect
bee genetics in detail.