> Immediately after receiving my 75 queens, I set them atop two of my
> strongest hives, directly on the top bars of the upper hive body, and
> covered them with a shallow tray (not a full super). Within a day or
> two all the attendant bees in the queen cages were dead, but all the
> queens were alive and flourishing.
I've observed this too, and it is typical -- as far as I can recall.
Moreover, this is not necessarily a bad thing, since it is said by some that
having attendants in cages will affect the sucessful introduction of queens.
I have also observed queens helping themselves to candy in the cages,
something many say they cannot/will not do.
allen