A couple of factoids that I remember.

The "average" colony has 40,000 to 60,000 bees/insects/bugs.

Bees, 99.9% female, usually die due to their wings wearing out. They can't make it back to the hive. Of course, birds get some of them.

I annually re-queened with both bred and/or virgin queens. Most breeders mark their queens with a small yellow paint dot on the back. That way they're easier to find and kill when you want to introduce a younger, more vigorous, queen. The old gal will kill the newcomer. Requeening is about the only time I suited up.

When a queens productivity (egg laying) starts declining the bees start readying new queens by feeding some of the larvae "royal jelly". If the old queen finds them she kills them. If a queen dies without a successor the hive goes into a funk. They get dispirited until a new queen can be grown. When she emerges her first action is to kill the other queen larvae that is being grown. Her second action is to leave the hive and fly outside looking for a drone. When they breed, always while flying, the drones body separates and he dies. When it separates, there is an audible snap. You hope that the drone is from one of your "tame" Europeanized colonies. A tramp drone can impart some meanness into all of his offspring. If that happens, you will have an aggressive colony. That means suiting up, smoking heavily, killing the old queen and providing a new one. Since the offending queen can produce more agressive drones you might possibly have to requeen other colonies.

Drones have only one function. They are there in case a new virgin queen needs to be bred. They fly around the hives all day hoping to get lucky. It's their job. They never gather pollen and can't feed themselves. They can go to any hive and will be fed. However, when Fall comes and Winter isn't far behind they will be refused admittance to a hive and denied food. So much for the life of a playboy.

I haven't thought of this stuff in quite a few years.

It's not about the fish. It's about the pond. Take care of the pond and the fish will be fine. PB subscriber since before it was in color.

Without a sense of urgency, Nothing ever gets done.

Boy, if I say "sic em", you'd better look for something to bite. Sam Shelley Rancher and Farmer Muleshoe Texas 1892-1985 RIP