I thought I would use the old transplant frame to replace the drone frame if I took it out. However, this is what I saw when I took it out of its plastic bag.
There was also a moth on the comb. This is the trail of a wax moth larva. You can see the webbing and the frass. On the other side, there was some webbing. I was surprised to see this. I decided not to put this frame into the hive. Now I know why you store the frames with paradichlorenzene (PDB) crystals. I find it interesting that I have found two of the common pests in my hive, varroa mites and wax moths. I suppose I'll find small hive beetle, too.
So, into the hive we went. Some bees and very little comb in the top super. I took out two frames and set them aside. Took off the top super and set it onto the inverted lid. In the middle super, which actually is the top brood chamber, we found the queen and two frames with lots of brood. I wanted to take two of these, but the queen was on the one I wanted, and I don't feel confident enough to "shake the bees off over the brood chamber to be sure the queen is not moved..." as Franklin Carrier instructs (Keeping Bees, p. 137). So I took one frame with a fair amount of brood and one with some brood. We hung these on the frame holder and then took the middle super off and placed in carefully on the top super (remember it is on the lid on the ground) making sure that the frame with the queen on it is centered.
With a bit of difficulty, I was able to remove the drone brood frame. There were lots of capped cells and some larva, as well. It was also covered with nurse bees. I shook the frame and some came off. I then used the bee brush. They sort of peel off and about 2/3 just fall, but the rest take angrily to the air. So I set the frame down to deal with later. Now there are lots of bees flying about and the smoker had gone out. (One needs to give it a puff every couple of minutes, but we had neglected to do so.) Maidi, who was taking pictures, volunteered to relight the smoker, but she was already retreating from the bees. I got the smoker to her and a few minutes later she brought it back burning.
Then I spaced the remaining 9 frames together with gaps at both ends. I hope that's the correct spacing. I replaced the middle super. I put the two frames from the honey super in, made sure the queen was still there (she was, on the same brood frame) and then put the honey super back on. Laura had been holding the frame holder and two frames during all this. She now hung the holder on the side. When Laura picked up one of the frames with brood and nurse bees many bees fell off and onto the ground at her feet. As I was putting the frame in, she felt something crawling on her leg. And then she got stung on the thigh. We hadn't even thought about rubber bands around the ankles, as is recommended. She left and I put the second frame in. Then I brushed the bees off the drone brood frame, making even more fly around. The bees, who had been so calm at the start, were now in an uproar. I had bees buzzing at me,on my suit and face screen and there were still a bunch on the ground. Before I closed up the hive I tried using the brush to pick up bees from the ground and the back porch of the hive and put them into the hive. After I closed the hive, I did use a leaf to pick up individual bees from the ground and put them on the porch. I don't know how many girls were lost.
The drone frame was put in a plastic bag and into the freezer. Next inspection I'll uncap the cells (I can use a fork) and put the frame back in the hive. Apparently, the bees eat the dead larva and dispose to the dead mites.
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