Swarm, no brood, virgin, wha'?

[JonnyPicklechin]

Cheers all...Anti's question does still leave one last head scratch because there was only two opened cups (and one could have been a play) I could see, right on the edges tucked under the "margin" of the lower frame bar. Not the more numerous and more 'frame based' cells you see on a swarm....There was no obvious jagged edged cup where you go "oh thats where she was"...Its older brood wax so its a bit trickier to tell but...

 

[tonyofarr]

They can be quite sneaky in hiding queen cells, I have a Buckfast colony that is particularly good at it; I think I had better book an eye test and get some new glasses.

 

[The Poot]

They can be quite sneaky in hiding queen cells, I have a Buckfast colony that is particularly good at it; I think I had better book an eye test and get some new glasses.

You’re not alone there.....

 

[oliver90owner]

No brood is the BIG CLUE.

Queen off-lay, say three or four days before swarming, closed queen cell when she went. That means another 8 days and perhaps a couple more before the emerging virgin swarmed. Add another day (or two?) before looking in - so is it surprising there was no capped brood left to emerge?

If the old queen had returned to the hive, she would likely be laying again within this time? Possibly not, but the same result - a missed swarm some time ago.

Often, interference by the beekeeper can push them into developing queen cells so they may have started immediately after the previous inspection and only needed 5 days before capping the first queen cell....

OP needs to do the maths, if he can actually remember all the relevant dates.