Queen being balled after I opened the hive

[heaflaw]

While I was checking frames, I saw a golf ball size of bees on one frame. I checked and there was the queen seemingly being attacked. I caught her in a cage. It took a while to get the workers in the cage to leave her alone and to get them out. I waited about 15 minutes and set the cage on the top bars and they seemed to act cordially toward her, so I let her out.

Have you ever had this happen before? What caused it and can it be prevented? Did I do the right thing by releasing her when I did?

[Ravenseye]

Is there another queen in that hive? Have you seen evidence of supersedure?

[Rick 1456]

I've seen this in packages and new queen introduction. Don't know why. If that is this case, I quit opening the hive on new queens for two weeks. Seems by then, they are laying and more "mature/recognized" as "the" queen. Just MO.

[heaflaw]

It was an established double deep that made 3 supers of honey. The flow ended 2 weeks ago. I only pulled out 3 frames looking for a frame of young larva to give a queenless hive.