What happens if a colony has laying workers?

When a bee colony has laying workers, the situation indicates a significant problem within the hive. Laying workers are typically older female worker bees that have assumed the role of laying eggs due to the absence of a queen. This phenomenon usually occurs when a colony has lost its queen and is unable to raise a new one, leading to serious reproductive issues.

Laying workers primarily produce unfertilized eggs, which develop into drones (male bees). However, without a queen to fertilize eggs, the colony lacks the foundation to produce the necessary workers and new queens essential for maintaining a balanced hive structure. Over time, as these workers continue to lay only drones, the worker population diminishes without the replenishment of new worker bees, leading to a decline in the colony's ability to function effectively.

Ultimately, the inability to produce a viable queen and the over-reliance on laying workers generally results in the colony's failure, as it becomes increasingly unable to care for itself or grow. Thus, the correct understanding is that a colony with laying workers is likely doomed to fail.