When First time Queen introduction goes wrong!

[Nordicul]

Hi All

My goal was to introduce a new Q to a v defensive hive. I had recently found and marked 3 new Qs in nucs , so I believed I would be able to find the Q in defensive hive, dispatch and Re Q.....getting over confident it turns out!

I had separated the flying bees from the Q and brood, leaving new box etc in original position.moving hive about 30 feet away, separating brood frames into couplets, leaving for a few hrs for things to settle.

Meantime I had started process of combining two nucs, one now minus a Q in cage ready for the Re Qing of my defensive one.

Then things started to go wrong, try as I might ...I went through it numerous times leaving time between searches. No Q seen but capped brood and larvae no eggs seen. It was starting to get dark, I had a caged Queen, bees now. getting pissed and stinging...I had used no smoke on them .
Then I went off plan! I put the caged Q in the hive and closed them up.

So without finding the Q and assuming she was in there....what will I find tomorrow?
Could she be killed in the cage?
If still alive tomorrow what should I do?
Remove her and go Q hunting again or something else?

All thoughts welcome

Nordicul

 

[Erichalfbee]

Then I went off plan! I put the caged Q in the hive and closed them up.

So without finding the Q and assuming she was in there....what will I find tomorrow?
Could she be killed in the cage?
If still alive tomorrow what should I do?
Remove her and go Q hunting again or something else?

All thoughts welcome

Nordicul

Oh dear. She would have been OK in your pocket
I'm sure if she has a refuge in the cage she will be OK but I would be straight back in tomorrow morning.I presume she has attendants?
Good luck. Let us know what happens

 

[pargyle]

If she's in one of the queen introduction cages they normally come in with a few attendants she will be OK. It's almost impossible for them to sting or ball her .. she will be fine.

Like Dani I'd have put her back in my pocket and let her wait another day.

You really need to find the queen that's in the colony though ... if you have tried all the queen finding tricks and failed (pairing frames, bleeding off flying bees etc. - Look up queen finding on here if necessary) then the last resort would be seiving them through a queen excluder.

Once you are certain they are queenless it will go like clockwork.

 

[Nordicul]

Update.

Thanks for feedback, but I decided to play my hand out!

When I went into the brood nuc this am , girls very quiet and calm, went through frames again but no sign of any Queen nor were they too disturbed. They were paying the caged Q little attention though some did appear to be feeding her.

Decided to up my ante and to change the cage for a push in one, she had been a laying Q before so I felt this might be better option....

However I know that I have not found the original Queen, nor proved the hive Queenless,...

Will the girls recognise a bluff!.......Watch this space.

Nordicul