Greg Hankins wrote:
>
> I installed two 3-lb packages in two Lang hive bodies Saturday a week ago.
> First inspection, on the following Thursday, found both queens released,
> though still hanging about in the queen cage. One (Queen of the B-Hive)
> exited the cage during my inspection, so I removed the cage. I replaced the
> other cage as I found it, with the queen (Queen of the A-Hive) still inside.
>
> Just watching the hive entrances, there seemed to be very little purposeful
> activity the first week -- just lots of milling about in front of the hive.
> But today (Tuesday, ten days out) there was serious-looking goings and
> comings (and full pollen baskets among the latter).
>
> Opening B-Hive I found comb being drawn on about six of the ten frames and
> pollen being placed in cells. I saw no eggs or larvae (though it was late
> afternoon, and my manual said eggs could be hard to see). Though not
> looking for her, I spotted the queen, who appeared to be walking around
> with no particular purpose in mind.
>
> In A-Hive I found no eggs or larvae. Pollen was in cells, as well as more
> nectar/syrup in cells than in B-Hive. I did not happen upon the A-Queen. I
> did find a couple of odd-shaped hood-like projections extending out from
> cells on one frame.
>
> Questions:
>
> Should a check this coming weekend reveal eggs or larvae? If not, what
> should I suspect/do?
 
These queens were released on day 5 +,- (by your observation; in this
five days the queens are being "pumped up" to laying capacity by the
colony, and they are also drawing coomb, beginning to collect pollen and
nectar, and organizing the frame best for brood rearing...they know how
to do that!   I shall assume that by the 7th day eggs are being laid,
though at onset they may not be as numerous as they soon will be.  Now!
Eggs, for me, are easier to see in new coomb (light yellow) than in
dark, and are best seen in the sunshine that falls right down the cell
axis, coming over my shoulder, and they are right in the bottom of the
cell, standing on end.  When they are 72 hours of age (Tuesday here,
they start to hatch, in which event they just melt down into a gentle c,
and lie in a thin glistening (in the sunshine)pool of royal jelly.  You
might miss this on Tuesday, the 10th day.   Wait til this weekend when
the larvae will be much larger, white, fresh, and clean, and fill the
bottom of the cell. Shortly thereafter you should see some capped brood.
 
>
> Those odd hood-shaped things in A-Hive weren't some nascent queencells
> that indicate the A-queen is no longer in evidence, are they?
 
This is possible, but remember, bees sometimes prepare queen cells for a
queen to lay in, which one may call "play" cells, and a new young queen
ignores them.  They may remain on the coomb for quite long periods.
Bees who have lost a queen do make such cells however, and the
possibility exists that the queen was "balled" subsequent to your early
look into the hive.  (I make it a practice not to enter the colony until
about 12-14 days, altho I have never seen but one queen "balled", and
this was a virgin queen hatched 4 days earlier (I saw her hatch).  I
picked her up and put her on a different frame, where the bees caused
her no trouble.  I would ignore the hooded "Q. Cells",if that is what
they are, expecting by 12-14- days to find larvae and a laying A-queen.
 
At that time, if no queen, eggs or larvae are found, you may have
trouble here.  Perhaps, I've been a bit long in this answer, but my hope
is that you will rest more comfortably for a few more days until a
decision can be made.  Write and ask another question if you wish!
And good luck!
 
 
>
> I'm attempting mightily to be non-paranoid about all this.I've read at
> least a dozen books (I'm obsessive that way). But it could be time for
> someone to say, "Don't worry, just check on things this weekend."
 
 What I said is not before "Sunday", and that my bet is that everything
is O.K.   Keep on reading!      Bob Barnett,     Birmingham, Ala
> Greg
>
> ____________________________________________________
> Greg Hankins                       Mt. Gilead, NC
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