Honey Bees Swarms
Honey bees produce wax and honey while helping to pollinate vegetation, gardens and orchards. However, when thousands of bees congregate in one area, creating a swarm, they can frighten or harm humans and animals.
The swarming of honey bees is a natural part of a developing honey bee colony. Honey bees swarm as a result of overcrowding within a hive. To create a swarm, an old honey bee queen leaves the hive with about half of the hive's worker bees, while a new queen remains in the old hive with the rest of the workers. In the wild, honey bees swarm most in late spring and early summer, at humid times of the day. While swarming is part of the healthy life cycle of every honey bee colony, beekeepers often attempt to reduce the incidence of swarming in domesticated bees.
A honey bee swarm may contain hundreds or thousands of worker bees, a few dozen drones and a single queen. Swarming honey bees fly temporarily, and then cluster on shrubs and tree branches. The clusters rest there for several hours to a few days, depending on weather conditions and the amount of time needed to search for a new nesting site. When a scout honey bee locates a good location for the new colony, the cluster immediately flies to the new site.
Generally, honey bee swarms do not harm people. Swarming honey bees do not feed during the swarm, and as such, their ability to sting is reduced. In addition, researchers believe that when a group of honey bees is away from the nest, they are less defensive.
However, a swarm of bees will attack when provoked, as workers attempt to protect their food supply and offspring. In addition, swarms of undomesticated honey bees may carry parasites or diseases. For this reason, it is advisable to avoid swarms of honey bees if possible. Should a persistent swarm of bees appear near your home or garden, it may be necessary to contact a pest control expert to assist in relocating or exterminating the swarm.
