Drones, the colony’s only males, make up just 5-15% of the hive and have one task: to mate with a queen from another hive, keeping bee families strong. When they are not loitering in sunny congregations waiting for that royal fly-by, they relax in the hive and let the workers feed them. A drone that mates dies almost instantly, while the rest spend a lazy summer in the hive.

As autumn creeps in and nectar runs low, the hive calls time on its idle gentlemen. Workers stop feeding the drones and start herding them toward the doorway like tiny bouncers at closing time. Some are shoved or tugged across the comb and pushed out, while others are barred each time they try to slip back in. 

Left outside without food, the drones soon perish. It is a chilly but practical measure that keeps the winter honey safe for the queen and her crew