Honey Bee Swarms
Association members are willing to collect honey bee swarms in the South Staffordshire and North West Midlands areas as a service to the local community.
There is no charge for this service but some beekeepers may ask for a small contribution for expenses.
If you have a swarm that needs collecting please contact us by one of the phone numbers on the contacts page.
Honey Bees can swarm for several reasons one of which is to form a new colony.
When young queens are about emerge in the parent colony the old Queen leaves together with a proportion of the workers. This swarm then lands nearby and forms a cluster to wait for scout bees to find them a new home.
It is at this point that beekeepers capture the swarm, take it away and house it in a hive.
The swarm is not dangerous while it is clustered as long as it is left alone. It is best however to call a beekeeper when you first find the swarm because if it stays in the same location for more than two days it can become bad tempered as the bees get hungry.
Before you call a beekeeper try and obtain the following information it will assist him/her to assess the situation.
1. What do they look like?
2. What are they doing?
3. How long have they been there?
4. When did you notice them?
5. How many are there?
6. How far from the ground are they?
I have included two photos of swarms to assist in your recognition of them.
Please note:-
We cannot remove established colonies from buildings.
We cannot deal with wasp nests.
We cannot deal with bumble bee colonies.
If you are not sure what you have please ring us and we will advise you over the phone.
