Egg-laying Worker Bees

摘要

An egg-laying worker bee is a female bee that lays haploid male eggs, usually in a hopeless queenless situation. It is a rare phenomenon but when it does occur it can cause a serious problem. There are two female castes in the honeybee colony: the queen and the worker bee. Although both hatch from a fertilized egg, the two females differ in their structure, appearance and behaviour. The difference is brought about by the variation in feeding and type of cell in which each caste is raised.