LIBRARY BLOG

Honey Bee Swarms

It’s swarming season for the honey bee! If you’ve ever seen bees grouped up on a tree limb, mailbox, or a trampoline, you’ve witnessed a swarm. These generally happen between spring and early summer here in Louisiana. Folks may panic when they see the little dark cloud of insects hovering overhead, but as long as the swarm isn’t interfered with, there’s nothing to worry about. The bees are simply on the hunt for a new home, moving from location to location until a suitable place is found for their queen.

Swarm of bees before landing

Cluster of bees surrounding their queen before moving to permanent home

Why do bees swarm?

Good question. Simply put, swarming is the reproduction of the honey bee colony. When the hive starts to get crowded, the colony decides to split in two. Half of the hive (20,000–ish bees) takes the queen to a new location and the other half stays at their current location. It’s a completely natural part of the bees’ ecosystem and is the sign of a healthy hive most of the time. Overcrowding in a colony will cause a lack of resources and result in the decline of bee health. To avoid this, the bees split the colony into two separate hives.

How does the swarm process work?

Bees are brilliant and get an A+ in preparation. When they begin to sense overcrowding, they start restricting the queen’s diet, forcing her to lose weight for a more successful flight to a new location. During this time, the colony will also start making new queens by creating a larger cells and feeding them only royal jelly made from glands within the worker bee’s head — best of foods for royalty. When the new queen larvae reach the pupil stage, half of the hive persuades the old queen to fly out to a new place. They find her landing spot by following her pheromones, and then they cluster around her. Scout bees from this group will then look for a more permanent home.

The queen bees are bred in special cells

After the scouting bees have secured a quality location, they guide the queen to her new place. The colony proceeds to start building wax comb, foraging for pollen and nectar, storing their goods in the newly formed wax, and raising their young. Back at the original location, when the first new queen emerges, she rids the hive of any other queen larvae — only one queen allowed. The original hive becomes a single colony once again.

Is the swarm safe?

Generally, you don’t have to worry when you see a large cluster of bees hanging in your tree; the scout bees are already looking for another place with better shelter from the elements. The swarm has nothing to protect but their queen, so they become less defensive and even docile. It’s always good, however, to be extra cautious and remain a good distance from the swarm, leaving it alone and allowing nature to do her thing. If you are concerned, you can always reach out to a local beekeeping group on social media. Bee people love swarms!