5 hours Thursday, until dark, then 3 hours Friday morning. Shaking it out of one tree 25 feet up, just to watch it land in another 25 feet up. Finally got it down to about 12 feet and set the box on the truck. Shook them off onto the telescoping lid and dumped them.
does the queen usually stay deep in the cluster or move on the outside? what happens if the queen dies?
I don't really know, but I would think she revolves according to temp., as do the workers. If she dies, they return to the hive.
Just sold this hive with 2 supers on it and they were still bearding on the front of the box. It sure grew fast. Guessing from lifting it to load, I would say it weighs 150 LB.