Actually, Queen Latifa was gone before these nasty things came in the first place. Wax moths come in and take over. When a hive is weak, there’s nothing the bees can do to fend these things off.

Wax Moth Larvae

I think I know the pattern of demise for Queen Latifa. She started off big with no problems. I added a super for the expansion. She swarmed anyway. Without a queen, there were no new eggs or larvae. That’s when the yellow jackets came in and robbed the hive of honey and the remaining larvae. The yellow jackets die off in the winter, making it a perfect habitat for the wax moths.

Wax Moths Between Frames

Total Hive Destruction By Wax Moths

Next step is to remove all the combs and burn them. Take the frames and freeze them. Start over with a fresh pack of bees in the Spring. Saving the world one bee at a time is exhausting!