SummaryQueens were relatively heavy and had large, well developed ovaries in the early summer. This condition coincided with a period of intensive egg laying. Ovary development was accompanied by a large drop in fat-body lipids and a significant increase in fat-body protein. Ovaries of laying queens were about 8 times as large as those of virgins. Between November and January, when no eggs were laid, queens were lighter and had smaller, less-developed ovaries. The weight of workers remained essentially unchanged throughout the year. Fat-body stores in both queens and workers were high in summer, then declined during September and October. A gradual build-up in queen fat-body stores began in November and continued through March. Total stores in the worker fat-body rose sharply in November, then fell again in December and January.Blood sugar concentrations were high in both queens and workers between June and October; caste patterns diverged between December and June, when concentration dropped nearly to zero in queens but increased to a level of more than 4% in workers. Blood sugar levels varied inversely with levels of fat-body lipids during late autumn and winter. More protein bands were observed during periods of heavy egg laying and brood rearing than at other times. The female-specific protein‘vitellogenin’was observed in both female castes. The concept of‘summer bees’and‘winter bees’appeared to be appropriate to queens as well as to workers.