Robert Brenchley asks if anyone has ever seen laying workers in a queenright
colony.  I have this weekend.  A week ago I was puzzled by drone cappings in
a colony with a young marked queen.  They seemed happy enough and I had lots
to do so I made a note to look again when I had more time, which was
yesterday.  Marked queen was still there.  I saw eggs but many of them were
not fixed to the base of the cells in the usual manner but were either offset
or on the wall of the cell.

I shook nearly all the bees off a few yards away and swapped positions of the
hive with a queenright nuc that needed reinforcing.  I shall go back in a few
days and see whether or not this has helped.

Chris Slade