It's that time of year again - Swarming season.

[Taff]

Honey bee swarms that is.

Swarming is the honey bee's way of multiplying, basically a strong healthy colony will split in half. The bees will raise a new queen and half the bees will leave with the old queen to set up home elsewhere. It's quite a spectacular thing to see and hear thousands of bees flying together.

I've seen a few reports online about swarms starting to leave so over the next few months you may see a swarm flying or collecting on a branch, If you do, keep well back, don't hit them with a stick or throw stones at them and remember that they will be moving on to their permanent home soon, they just haven't found it yet.

you can go onto https://www.bbka.org.uk/swarm, enter your postcode and it will give you contact details for a local beekeeper that is on the 'swarm list'

You could call a pest controller, they won't kill the swarm and often will either collect the swarm themselves or call in a friendly beekeeper from the swarm list above.

[Horse]

Our 'hotel' has loads of [what we think from Googling are] Red Mason bees, collecting wood from the centre of the canes.

[636mick]

Our 'hotel' has loads of [what we think from Googling are] Red Mason bees, collecting wood from the centre of the canes.

Just explain that if you could please? I have a little house shaped thing in the garden, about 12” high and 8” wide, has little bits of bamboo I though stacked in it. When I first moved in the tubes were empty, last year they’d all became sealed if that’s the right word. Now they are starting to open again, is this a bee hotel of which you speak?? Do the bees open them up as I’ve seen a few around the garden, I live in a small village with open countryside right across the road so I expect insects etc that I didn’t get in a town.
Just interested how it works and if I need to do anything to it.
Cheers
Mick

[Horse]

I think (not asked them ) they crawl in, chew out the soft inner, then use that to build the 'paper' nest elsewhere.

[Taipan]

Honey bee swarms that is.

Swarming is the honey bee's way of multiplying, basically a strong healthy colony will split in half. The bees will raise a new queen and half the bees will leave with the old queen to set up home elsewhere. It's quite a spectacular thing to see and hear thousands of bees flying together.

I've seen a few reports online about swarms starting to leave so over the next few months you may see a swarm flying or collecting on a branch, If you do, keep well back, don't hit them with a stick or throw stones at them and remember that they will be moving on to their permanent home soon, they just haven't found it yet.

you can go onto https://www.bbka.org.uk/swarm, enter your postcode and it will give you contact details for a local beekeeper that is on the 'swarm list'

You could call a pest controller, they won't kill the swarm and often will either collect the swarm themselves or call in a friendly beekeeper from the swarm list above.

This seems to happen often round here with people going into panic mode and turning the hosepipe on them etc! I'll copy and paste your post onto our local Facebook page so hopefully people will know what to do.

[Taff]

Our 'hotel' has loads of [what we think from Googling are] Red Mason bees, collecting wood from the centre of the canes.

Just explain that if you could please? I have a little house shaped thing in the garden, about 12” high and 8” wide, has little bits of bamboo I though stacked in it. When I first moved in the tubes were empty, last year they’d all became sealed if that’s the right word. Now they are starting to open again, is this a bee hotel of which you speak?? Do the bees open them up as I’ve seen a few around the garden, I live in a small village with open countryside right across the road so I expect insects etc that I didn’t get in a town.
Just interested how it works and if I need to do anything to it.
Cheers
Mick

These will be solitary bees, they have a different life cycle to honey bees.

In those tubes, the Queen will lay an egg, then pack pollen in and seal that cell with a piece of leaf or mud. Then another egg & pollen and so on until she reaches the end of the tube.
The Queen will then start on another tube. These tubes then start in place until next spring when the bees will grow and start the cycle again.

[Horse]

They didn't get the memo about beeing (sic) solitary

20210425_155940.jpg (161.84 KiB) Viewed 885 times

20210425_155729.jpg (157.11 KiB) Viewed 885 times

[Skub]

I thought this was going to be about EF double U Bees.

What I hear from the garden would indicate the swarms.

[Yambo]

I live in a huge bee keeping area (it's a National Park partly due to the pine honey production) and I know at least 6 or 7 people with over 200 hives each and there are many more but I've never seen a swarm of bees.

[Mr. Dazzle]

I live in a huge bee keeping area

Watch out!



I do like bees...no idea why. I've never kept them or anything, but they're one of my favourite animals. We've got shit loads of Lavender edging bushes outside our front door and I've also added Lupins and a few other things bees like. In summer there will often loads of bees buzzing around, I think I counted forty outside the front door once.

They're too busy eating to pay anyone any notice. My brother and his other half are both people who flap their arms around and do a stupid little jig whenever a bee or wasp is nearby though, always amuses me if they visit. Baby D on the other hand loves watching them and gets close enough to see them sticking their tongues in the flowers.

[Scud]

I live in a huge bee keeping area (it's a National Park partly due to the pine honey production) and I know at least 6 or 7 people with over 200 hives each and there are many more but I've never seen a swarm of bees.

If the hives are managed correctly they won’t swarm, the keepers will split the colonies to stop the swarming and create new colonies.

I have had to stop beekeeping now due to the fact I am reacting more and more with every sting I receive - and I seemed to get stung plenty by a very aggressive colony I had.

Just a note, bees are very unlikely to sting while swarming, they are busy swarming and have usually gorged in honey before leaving the hive

[Horse]

a spectacular thing to see and hear

We were walking on the Ridgeway a few years ago, detoured into Waylands Smithy. It's a long barrow so fairly, well, long.

When furthest from the gate we could hear a noise like a tractor in a distant field. A swarm had arrived in the trees just outside.

Not sting? Perhaps not - but the volume was astounding and felt like a severe warning

[Taff]

Yeah, I chose not to say that they are unlikely to sting, which is the common thinking about swarms, because I have collected an aggressive swarm that stung my suit several times. They were the exception to the norm but had I not had a suit on then it would have been a painful day.

The experience of dealing with an aggressive colony is a scary thing, 30 or 40 thousand bees with a single goal of defending the hive and fighting to the death of necessary.

[gremlin]

Our 'hotel' has loads of [what we think from Googling are] Red Mason bees

They can be(e) easily identified by their single rolled-up trouser leg and funny handshake when they meet another Red Mason bee.

[Horse]

Our 'Lodge' has loads of [what we think from Googling are] Red Mason bees

They can be(e) easily identified by their single rolled-up trouser leg and funny handshake when they meet another Red Mason bee.

You jest:

The beehive is a very old Masonic symbol that is still used in many countries

[Taff]

today was fun in an 'oh shit, what's going on out there?' kind of way.

[Taff]

My bees are now on someone else's land, and the landlady messages me to say that it looked like they were moving home........



This swarm is huge at about 18" top to bottom, they weren't from any of my hives but are in one now

They would cost about £300 to buy

[Taff]

it's that time of year again, colonies are growing and swarms will start leaving over the next few weeks

[636mick]

Someone has reported a swarm on my village Facebook page today. They also said they could be wasps though.
We have a company called Rivendell Bees near here who manage any swarms. They put a lot of info on Facebook which is interesting and informative, trying to educate the inbreeds!
Mick

[Yorick]

Nothing nasty or bitey here