Mark Spitzig
It is our goal and promise to provide you with the highest quality Survivor Queenbees available—Honeybees chosen by Beekeepers for Beekeepers. We are committed to conscientious beekeeping, From the shores of Lake Superior to the banks of the Rio Grande.
We ensure this by practicing sustainable beekeeping management techniques. We encourage healthy and considerate queen mating by allowing our queens to mature for an extended period of time (21-24 days minimum) in a larger mating nuc than most queen producers do. By doing this, we can verify our queens full brood pattern instead of just a few eggs. Saturating mountainous pockets with diverse survivor drone stock also promotes genetic cross-stocking. Well fecundated (mated) queenbees that have mated with a multitude of drones from a diverse pool (queenbee promiscuity) are found to be more attractive to their worker bees. Research evidence shows that having colonies with various sister and sub-sister families promotes an overlapping network of hive health and pest/pathogen resistance. Our conscientious protocols of extra time, space, and ample saturation of diverse genetic strains, guarantees that the Survivor Queenbees you receive from us are well-mated, proven layers with solid brood patterns and desirable genetic traits.
Our Survivor Queenbees & Cells
Both Cross-Stocks are available with either SMR/VSH Italian or Carniolan base mothers. New stock also includes shared genetics from regional beekeepers—Honeybees chosen by Beekeepers for Beekeepers. All breeders have successfully overwintered at minimum two winters in the woods of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan or the diverse and adverse conditions of the southern Rockies and valleys of New Mexico.
- Rocky Mountain Reinas (from The Southwest Survivor Queenbee Project)
- Great Lakes Sooper Yooper Queenbees (from Great Lakes Survivor Stock)
For more info, see our Price List (PDF). Pricing subject to change.
For availability and to place an order, please call 505-929-8080
or Email Us.
Marking included Free of Charge. Clipping add $1/queen.
Rocky Mountain Reinas
Rocky Mountain Reinas are bred from regionally exceptional stock gathered through The Southwest Survivor Queenbee Project. These honeybees exhibit productivity, heartiness, gentleness and pest/disease resistance.
As proven survivors, they are suitable for the challenging, diverse ecology
and microclimates of the Rocky Mountains and the Greater American Southwest.
Breeding stock has over-wintered at minimum two years with no commercial
pharmaceutical applications and is composed of Carniolan, SMR/VSH, Russian, and
Italian genetics. Bred cooperatively by beekeepers for beekeepers, Southwest
Survivor Queenbees have the very best traits from diverse strains of honeybees
from across New Mexico, the broader Rio Grande tributaries and Rocky Mountain
Regions.
Great Lakes Sooper Yooper Queenbees
These northern queenbees are of Carniolan and SMR/VSH Italian descent. Their
production of wax, honey, and pollen is high when the flow is on. Their
mothers all survived at least two everlasting winters in the Upper Peninsula
of Michigan with no chemical treatments. They have also maintained above
average production in marginal conditions and at high altitude, dry and
riparian environments. Most importantly, they are high producing, excellent stress handlers,
long-lasting, high-producing and hygienic. We began developing this cross-stock
back in 2003 and every year they get heartier!
Zia Queenbees Are Productive
Queenbees from Zia Queenbee Co. produce colonies of excellent varied traits. When selecting bees, honey production is our primary concern followed by hygienics, pest and disease resistance, gentleness and longevity. Honey production is a great indicator of a good colony but hygienics and pest monitoring are vital to establishing a colony’s overall lifetime merit. A colony that has never been exposed to a pest or disease may produce well but lack survivor qualities needed to make it from year to year. Through research and experimentation, we have come to prefer Cross-stocks and appreciate their overall production in average, above average and marginal conditions. By establishing the lifetime merit of each colony thru two consecutive years of observation, we can rate the overall performance combining production and survivability to produce a better bee.
Zia Bees Are Naturally Pest & Disease Resistant
Zia Queenbee Co. does not medicate our honeybees with questionable commercial treatments. Our honeybees are healthy because they have endured Mother Nature's survival of the fittest regimen. Therefore our superior stock, their beeswax honeycomb and their enchanted honeys are not contaminated. All their products, which they share with us and we humbly share with you, are completely natural and healthy. We do incorporate conscientious integrated pest management protocols when necessary including supplements consisting of: the Dowda method with garlic powder, grease patties with essential oils and quality bee feed (when necessary) made from quality ingredients—No High Fructose Corn Syrup! We only feed our bees what we feel comfortable imbibing ourselves.
Zia Queens Are Hearty Survivors
Zia Survivor breeder queens have endured the rigors of either the cold/wet Great Lakes region or the hot day-cold night/arid Southwest. They've survived long winters in Michigan and the intense summers in New Mexico, as well as high altitudes in the Rocky Mountains. Our queens incorporate the varied genetics of diverse honeybee stock- from across the USA. We routinely purchase quality stock from various rearers and breeders nationwide every year. These purchased queens, regardless of origin, must also endure at minimum two winters in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and the Land of Enchantment, New Mexico. Once they have successfully overwintered and produced well while maintaining health, vitality and production, they are inducted as breeding contenders and begin as mother breeders; retiring as Support drone breeders in following seasons. They must produce honeybees that routinely exhibit high productivity, heartiness, gentleness, and pest/disease resistance. Grafted queens are isolated in mating yards with an abundance of regulated and selected survivor drone colonies in northern New Mexico and in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
Zia Honeybees Are Gentle
Zia Queenbee Company works our colonies gloveless, usually veil-less and with minimal smoke. If we are unable to do so, we do not keep those bees. We provide beekeepers with gentle honeybees because we have selected specifically for that trait. Gentleness is an important quality for beekeeping within villages and towns. Please keep in mind that all honeybees will defend their colony when threatened; extreme aggressiveness is an undesirable trait, not to mention a liability.
Many beekeepers and community members are concerned about Africanized honeybees (AHB) and so are we. Fortunately, New Mexico's high elevation and lack of open water restricts the establishment of AHB within The Land of Enchantment. During the hot summer months, occasional AHB colonies have been identified in southern New Mexico. However, these colonies do not appear to survive the winter. Zia Queenbees is located in northern New Mexico. AHB have never been found anywhere near our breeding operation.
Beekeeping Is Important
Beekeeping is a dying art. However, as long as we require food to eat, there will be a need for honeybees and beekeepers. As new diseases, pests and challenges afflict honeybees, we need to be innovative and dedicated to conscientious management protocols. It is imperative that we cooperate as a local, regional and national community to ensure positive stewardship of our lands, resources and health. We welcome all beekeepers—new and seasoned. We are committed to sharing our experiences and knowledge of the beneficial aspects of honeybees and our relationship to them. Your interest in beekeeping is appreciated.