Cupularve is a system for queen rearing that avoids having to transfer larvae.
The cupularve is a system that has been used since 1985 to prevent larva transfer. It consists of a plate with 110 cells covered by a queen excluder cover.
Once the queen is locked up, she begins to lay eggs between 48 and 72 hours directly in the
artificial domes.
The Cupularve is made up of 3 main parts:
- A honeycomb plate with 110 cells and a small compartment for the candi and another compartment to put the queen.
- The 110 alveoli are covered with 110 plastic domes.
- A queen excluder cap.
- A rear closing cover also has a stopper.
DIRECTIONS FOR USE
We need a strong hive with a queen to place the dome frame in, we also need an orphan hive to place the dome frame so that the bees from the orphan hive can complete the process. Then we need nuclei or orphan hives to introduce the queens raised.
STRONG HIVE WITH QUEEN .
-Cut a piece from the center of a frame with a brood similar to the CUPULARVE.
-Place the CUPULARVE in its place, nailing it with some toothpicks.
-Put a little water and honey in the cells to familiarize the cupularve.
-Put the hive without the queen excluder for several days so that the bees accept it better and the queen 's scent becomes impregnated. Feed the hive 4 days before.
-Put the queen excluder cover on.
-Introduce the queen into the chamber
-Put a thick sugar paste in the candy enclosure to isolate the queen.
Once the worker bees have eaten the sugary paste, the queen has become familiar with the dome and leaves through the hole to lay her eggs in the domes from the front.
Once the queen has become familiar with the cupularve and laid the eggs, when these have hatched we can remove the cupularve with the eggs laid. If the eggs had not hatched the workers would remove them and our result would be unsuccessful. (Normally the cupularve is placed on the cupularve pads between 48 and 72 hours, that is, between the second and third day).
The queen can be released 24 hours after laying by removing the exit plug.
ORPHAN HIVE
The domes are placed on the dome-holder blocks that we previously put on the block supports that we have placed with nails or screws in a frame made for the occasion. We use as an example a layens frame with three slats to place the block supports and the dome-holder blocks. In this frame the workers of the orphaned hive will make the queen cells. Before the queens are born, that is, before 12 days, we must place the protective cages. (3 eggs +12≤16 days)
Once the queens have hatched, we can introduce them into the hives or queenless nuclei with the same protective cage, covering the exit with a thick sugar paste.
When the workers eat this sugary paste the queen emerges and by this time the hive has become familiar with the queen.
