I'm sure they sit there devising new ways to play with your head

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Demaree'd a few colonies at the home apiary a week ago last Monday, today was the first chance I'd had to get in to the boxes due to weather and other commitments. First hive went smoothly, a few nice QC's bees seemed happy, so I harvested one nuc off it and moved them to the mating stand. The next one was a line I've had for years, calm bees, prolific queens and good honey producers but the queen was flagging a bit towards the end of last season and I was surprised she hadn't been superseded by the spring. I' found her on the first frame so she was quickly popped in a new bottom box with plenty of drawn comb and foundation, the rest was just transferred to the top and I closed up.
Today I opened up the hive and (although conditions aren't perfect here so bees a wee bit tetchy) they were calm and laid back in the top box, first frame had a few mediocre scrubby QCs that I tore down. Second frame................. a lovely unmarked queen wandered across the frame!! no other open brood or eggs in the top box, so I quickly went to the bottom box to find very little activity apart from nurse bees tending the frame I'd put there with the old queen last week, definitely no queen, definitely no eggs or open brood.
I'm sure the people in the neighbouring workshops were wondering who I was shouting at!!