What To Do If You Find a Swarm of Bees?

What is a swarm of honey bees?

Honey bee colonies reproduce by swarming, a process where about one-third to one-half of the workers in a colony leave in a swarm with the queen to set up a hive in a new location. The original hive is left with a developing queen, worker bees and brood. A swarm of honey bees is typically composed of one queen and thousands of worker bees and can range from softball sized to larger than a basketball, depending on the number of bees.

Swarming

It can happen throughout the active bee season (spring through fall) but is most common during May and June. When the colony determines conditions are right, the swarm leaves the hive. Before flying to its final destination, it will first gather close to the hive, often on a tree branch, fence post or other nearby spot. The swarm typically stays in this temporary location from a couple hours to several days, which is when they are often spotted by passers-by. While the swarm is in this temporary location, scout bees are out searching for a suitable location for the colony to take up more permanent residence. Once the new location is identified, the swarm will depart and fly as a group to the new location.

Why contact a beekeeper?

Because a swarm is a fully functioning colony, many beekeepers are prepared and willing to collect swarms into hive equipment to expand their beekeeping operations. Swarms that are not collected by beekeepers unfortunately usually do not survive. Beekeepers have to manage honey bee colonies for parasites and disease, so unmanaged colonies have a high likelihood of dying due to unmanaged disease and parasite pressure. Even worse, as these unmanaged colonies die, they can risk spreading parasites and diseases to managed colonies.

Honey Bees and structures

The scouts of a honey bee swarm will search for a cavity to establish a permanent hive location, and while they may sometimes find a tree cavity, it’s also possible that they find a cavity in a building or structure. Colonies that establish themselves within structures or near highly populated areas can be a nuisance or hazard. It can be difficult and often very expensive to remove honey bee colonies from structures, so having a beekeeper capture the swarm before it has the chance to take up residence is good preventative practice. It is important for the sake of the honey bees and your neighbors to call a beekeeper if you see a swarm.

Information to provide

The beekeeper will want information about the swarm’s location. What is the address or GPS coordinates of the swarm? Is the swarm gathered on a tree branch, fence post or somewhere else? How high off the ground is it? Is there anything surrounding the swarm that would make it difficult or dangerous to collect the swarm? Sometimes beekeepers will travel long distances to collect swarms, so it is important to let them know if you have contacted other individuals or if the swarm flies away before they arrive.

Make sure they're Bees

Many people confuse honey bees with other insects like bumble bees, yellow jacket wasps, and paper wasps. The beekeeper may want to confirm that the insects are honey bees before traveling to collect the swarm.

Should I become a beekeeper?

Remember that honey bees are animals that require a lot of specialized care to thrive, so before you plan on keeping a swarm, consider if you have the time and resources to care for them. If you find yourself fascinated by a swarm of honey bees and want to learn to keep bees, take a year to learn about beekeeping before you get started. You can start by reading a short article called Should You Keep Bees?

This article was published by

Michigan State University Extension