- A The queen bee alone is sometimes thought to possess largely functional wings while worker bees remain largely wingless during normal conditions
- B The queen develops from a fertilized egg fed exclusively on royal jelly throughout its larval period, making it reproductively complete
- C The queen bee herself is sometimes thought to be diploid while all the worker bees in the colony are instead largely haploid in most cases
- D The queen is sometimes thought to develop via parthenogenesis while worker bees instead develop from separately fertilized eggs under typical conditions
Correct answer: B. The queen develops from a fertilized egg fed exclusively on royal jelly throughout its larval period, making it reproductively complete
Explanation: The queen bee develops from a fertilized (diploid) egg, as do worker bees, but the queen larva is fed exclusively on royal jelly throughout development. This nutritional difference activates genes making her reproductively complete (functional ovaries), while workers fed royal jelly only briefly have vestigial ovaries.
Concept context
Learn about animal husbandry, plant breeding, tissue culture, biofortification, and single cell protein.
Read the full Strategies for Enhancement in Food Production notes →