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David C. of Arkansas writes:
I have three hives that I started last year and all three swarmed in the last week. Now, they are swarming again — the same colonies.Whydo the same colonies keep swarming every few days?
Rusty Burlew replies:
When you’re perplexed about swarming behavior, it helps to remember that swarming is a reproductive process. For a species to survive in the world, reproduction is the most important thing any organism can do. Any creature that can’t reproduce, will soon disappear.
This can be confusing when we’re dealing with a superorganism like a honey bee colony. We think of queen mating as reproduction, but newly mated queens cannot start a new “family” unless the colony breaks up and sets up housekeeping in new locations. The more swarms a colony can send into the world, the better off the species will be.
Multiple swarms are not unusual. In fact, they have names. The first and largest of the season is the primary swarm, after which you can have a secondary and often a tertiary swarm. When the swarms leave in rapid succession, the old queen leaves with the primary swarm, and the secondary and tertiary swarms may leave with unmated virgin queens, although sometimes the new queens may have already mated. The timing of mating and swarming is largely dependent on local weather conditions.
Not all colonies throw multiple swarms. It’s a bit like human families: some have no children, some have one or two or three. Biologically, the colony “decides” how many it can afford. When you look at the future of the species, a honey bee colony is better off having three offspring instead of one, even if the parent colony dies in the process.
That said, I’ve seldom seen a colony swarm itself to death. Swarm season is short, lasting roughly 6 to 8 weeks. Once it’s over, the colonies—both parent and offspring—have the rest of the spring and summer to prepare for the winter ahead. During that time, even a colony that threw three or even four swarms will probably be able to make up the losses. However, many of the swarms won’t make it, which is another reason that more is better.
From the beekeeper’s perspective, swarming seems like a huge loss, and there’s no doubt that those swarming bees reduce honey production. But from the bee’s point of view, the colony is doing what it is designed to do.
It may or may not be relevant in your case, but sometimes a colony appears to be swarming over and over when, in fact, the same swarm is returning to the hive and then trying again on another day. This occurs when the queen does not come along, or she gets lost or is eaten by a bird. Without a queen, the swarm will die, so if they lose their queen, the entire swarm will return and try again later, which can appear like many swarms instead of just one.
David replies:
I’m not having any luck capturing this latest secondary swarm. I must not be getting the queen if there is one that has been tried four times. This is not a normal swarm. They mostly fly off when I bump them with my bucket on a pole, and they are mean, as I have been stung several times while wearing a jacket and pants.
Rusty replies:
When a group of honey bees is aggressive and stingy, it usually means they are without a queen. It’s the queen’s pheromones that keep the group in control so, without a queen, there is no supervision, no “rule of law.” If the swarm is uncooperative and nasty, you may not want them even if you could catch them.
FAQs
The primary reasons for swarming are to reproduce and ensure the survival of the species. Honeybees swarm to reproduce. The colony makes a few new queens and when they are about to hatch, the old queen together with about half the colony leaves, to start a new colony somewhere else.
Why are bees swarming in my backyard? ›
Generally, there are two reasons why honey bees swarm: lack of space and colony reproduction. When a swarm occurs, the existing queen bee takes roughly half of the current colony and begins to look for a new place to colonize.
How do you stop a bee colony from swarming? ›
Separation of Queen from the Brood - Separation of queen from brood, or Demareeing, is probably the most widely used swarm control practice and is the easiest and most successful method in use today to control swarming.
Why does my bee hive keep swarming? ›
Honey bees, Apis mellifera, swarm for one of two reasons. Either the hive has become too crowded so they split into two groups (or more), with one group remaining in the existing hive. Or they abscond.
How to get rid of swarming bees in yard? ›
If you can't find a beekeeper to help, call a pest control company with experience with bee removal. Be aware that pest control companies generally will kill the bees before removing them. Don't try to remove the colony yourself unless you have experience and proper equipment.
Why are there suddenly so many bees in my backyard? ›
Do You Have Colorful Flowers? If so, you may be attracting bees to your yard. Bees especially like the following colors: yellow, white, blue, violet, and purple, so if you have these color flowers in your garden, you may see more bees than you're used to.
Why are my bees swarming outside the hive? ›
When a colony expands and the hive gets overcrowded, half of the brood, along with the queen, will leave in search of a new home – where there is ample food and more space. You can expect to see swarming when bees are growing their hive population in the spring or summer.
What can trigger swarming? ›
The age of the queen bee is an important factor that determines swarming. Older bees have a swarming tendency. Bees also swarm when the hive becomes overcrowded and the queen bee does not have enough space to lay eggs.
How to repel swarming bees? ›
Grow Deterring Plants
Strong scents can also be used against bees. Bees find several scents repulsive and will give these plants plenty of distance. Grow these natural repellants around your property to create a defensive perimeter against bees: marigolds.
Will adding a honey super prevent swarming? ›
Many beekeepers think that simply adding a super will keep their honey bees from swarming in the spring, but this is not always the case.
Swarming is a natural process through which honeybees reproduce and pass along genes to the next generation. Though often viewed as counter-productive for the beekeeper, if honey is the goal, it is in fact a sign that the colony is healthy and flourishing.
How long do bee swarms stay in one place? ›
Typically, swarms only stay in one place for a few hours or maybe a day, but some swarms may remain for several days.
Can you prevent bees from swarming? ›
My favourite thing to do is to take a split - that's taking half the frames out of the brood box here, then putting in fresh frames and that frees up a whole lot of room for the queen to lay. And that is a really good way to prevent swarming. And if you don't want another hive, then somebody else surely will.
Do bee swarms go away on their own? ›
Will a swarm of bees go away on their own? Yes, a swarm is a group of bees in transit from their original hive to a new home.
How to deal with bee swarms? ›
Swarms are temporary and the bees will move on if you patiently ignore them. Stay back and keep others away from the swarm, but feel free to admire and appreciate the bees from a safe distance. You may be able to give a honey bee swarm to a beekeeper who will gather the swarm and relocate it for you.
What causes sudden bee swarm? ›
The most common cause of a bee swarm is that the colony just outgrew their hive! A large population may lead to the colony running out of space to store honey and brood, hindering the workings of the hive.
Why would a swarm of bees be on the ground? ›
Because they don't fly very well any more, they tend to just crawl around for a while until they basically starve. It's a bit sad, but they're not into caring for their most needy members. Pile is a good bearing capacity of soil.
Why are bees flying around my yard? ›
Majority of ground nesting bees seen flying around are males who do not have stingers and are simply looking for a female to mate with. The females, who are busy with nest construction in the ground, typically do not have well-developed stingers.
