The grass is green, flowers are blooming, and bees are buzzing. As the days get longer and the temperatures get warmer, honey bee activities begin to increase as they prepare for the spring nectar flows. The bees are now beginning to build up their populations in order to have enough worker bees to gather the nectar. As the populations build up, some bee colonies increase their numbers very quickly and some individual hives may become overcrowded. These overcrowded conditions can stimulate a phenomenon called “swarming”.

Swarming is part of the reproductive cycle in honey bees. Though honey bees reproduce individual bees through mating and egg-laying, swarming is how honey bees create new colonies. The process of swarming involves production of a new queen within an individual colony. When this queen emerges and is ready to take on the duties of a queen bee, the old queen (the new queen is now the queen of the old hive), along with approximately one-half of the workers in that colony, will leave the hive as a large mass of bees. This mass of bees will congregate on a tree limb, fence post or on a side of a building near the original hive. A congregation of bees in this manner is called a swarm.

Bees begin swarming in early spring through June normally. When a swarm comes in contact with a house they normally will stick around for a few days and then leave. But if they find a safe area to build a colony they will stay. If there is a swarm around your residence it is best to leave them alone for a couple days and see if they leave. If the bees do not leave, contact a bee keeper to come and remove the bees or contact the Seminole County Extension office for more information at 405-257-5433.