Imagine taking a walk, minding your own beeswax, and out of nowhere you’re suddenly surrounded by bees. TV specials about swarming killer bees might suddenly fill your head, but how dangerous is this situation? In this article, we’ll break down what a bee swarm is, why bees swarm, when you’re likely to experience these swarms, and how to keep yourself safe if you find yourself among swarming bees.
Why do honey bees swarm?
Not to sound like a bad standup comedian, but what is the deal with swarming bees? In all seriousness, swarming bees are a natural part of a bee hive’s life cycle. Bees swarm when a new queen emerges and takes part of an existing hive with her to found a new hive. This creates a brand new bee hive while leaving the old hive intact, if missing a few bees.
Be swarms usually contain between a few hundred and a few thousand worker bees, some drones, and one queen. The worker bees will lay the foundation for the new hive, getting ready to build the actual hive structure itself and find food for a new generation of bee babies.
Read more: 10 of the best flowers for bees
What time of year do swarming bees occur?
Knowing when it’s swarm season can help keep you safe from swarms. Most swarming bees will depart their old hives sometime in spring or early summer. You may encounter these swarming bees flying all over the place or collected together on a branch. If you’re interested in becoming a bee keeper, you can catch a swarm by enticing them into an empty hive box.
Are swarming bees dangerous?
In short, no. In the vast majority of situations, swarming bees won’t be dangerous. I personally found myself walking face first into a swarm of bees that were flying down my street. It was amazing to me how they opted not to bother me or sting me. They would run into me and then continue flying along or avoid me all together.
Swarming bees aren’t typically dangerous because they are away from their nest. Bees will rarely sting aggressively when they aren’t close to home. The best thing that you can do is not swat at them. If one lands on you, resist the urge to smack it. It’s just taking a brief break! If all else fails, do your best to get away from the swarm. Step into a building while it passes.
What to do if a swarm causes problems
Swarming bees don’t generally cause problems for humans, but if you were to go outside to take out the recycling only to find that a bee swarm has decided that your recycling bin is a great place to post up for a while, yeah, that’s an issue. Bees sometimes swarm and begin building nests in all the wrong places.
First of all, don’t panic! These bees are docile and won’t be a threat to you if you don’t bug them. Don’t do anything wild like spray them with a hose or try to shake them off of your recycle bin. Most of the time when bees select an unfavorable place to rest, they’re only stopping by. They’ll eventually move on.
You can also go online and find a local bee keeper. They may be willing to come and safely relocate the swarm or will know of someone who can help you. Bees are great to have around, so we should treat them with respect and try to relocate them if they cause issues.