Menolly had promised him one when her queen, Beauty, mated.

So the queen can check and even mate the king without danger to herself, but the pawn has to be guarded.

During their nuptial flight the queens mate with several males, who die shortly after.

As both emerge, the new queens mate with the males.

One queen will usually mate with several males.

Unlike most ant species, queens mate underground and are incapable of flight.

In this species the queens may mate once or several times.

Most ant species have a system in which only the queen and breeding females can mate.

However, since queens usually mate with a dozen drones or more, not all workers are full sisters.