A first for me

[BeeMaster2]

Gary,
Thanks for the update.
As far as I know, bees do not move the eggs. The queen glues the egg to the bottom of the cell and they stay there.
You mention in the first paragraph that "The old queen (this year) is gone. No eggs, brood, larva, capped brood, just honey. " Were you referring to the first inspection when there was a really good brood pattern? That may have been from both queens laying together before the new one moved up.
Jim

[GSF]

That's right Jim, when I first discovered the two queens I noted that they were separated by the queen excluder and the bottom two boxes looked great. The one up top just didn't have much room to be a queen.

[Old Blue]

Thanks for the update GSF!
This stuff keeps getting more and more interesting all the time.
Those are great observations you made and the answers are really piecing it together.

Old Blue
Where the tax perps out bribe the tax victims.  Where else but..............
Kali-bone-ya

[Old Blue]

Hey De Know ! !

Thanks for lesson on finishers and starters.
I'm working my way towards having more control over my little apiary.
All these bits of understanding are really helpful and are giving me some great ideas.
It seems like using excluders with a small upper entrance is a less risky way to split a hive or make a crop of queens cells to add to splits since hive resources heat and protection are already at a well established level.

Dang man!
You just taught an old dog some new tricks.
Thanks again.

Old Blue
Where you get the price of your water bill INCREASED because you were dumb enough to conserve it.  Where else but ........
Kali-bone-ya