Swarms
Report a swarm 07555 180260
Swarming is a natural process and is the colony’s way to reproduce. The queen and a large proportion of the bees swarm to find somewhere new to set up home, while the remainder of the colony stays behind to raise a new queen. The swarm will find somewhere convenient to cluster and then send out scout bees to find a new home. Once a decision is made the swarm then moves on to its chosen location.
Watching bees swarm is an amazing sight; the air can be momentarily thick with bees (people usually notice the loud buzzing sound first) but then the swarm will usually settle after about 20 minutes or so, and hang in a loose-shaped ‘V’ cluster. If left alone swarms are rarely aggressive.
Swarms vary in size from large prime swarms to smaller casts; generally if you see a football-sized cluster of brownish bees on a tree or bush, a wall or a fence, they are likely to be honey bees, although swarms can cluster in all manner of strange locations!
It is always better if swarms can be collected and re-homed by a beekeeper as soon as possible. This avoids the bees taking up residence in someone’s chimney or other inconvenient location and offers them the best chance of survival.
Honey bees usually swarm between April and July, although swarms have been seen as late as August / September.
I’ve got a swarm - help!
Report a swarm 07555 180260
If you have a swarm or spot one please note the location, take a photo if you can, and contact our Swarm Collection Coordinators below as soon as you can. If at all possible they will arrange for the swarm to be collected. It’s immensely helpful to contact the Swarm Coordinators immediately you see the swarm and while the bees are still in a cluster, as this allows for the best chance of a successful swarm collection.
If it is possible for us to help then a beekeeper will come out to collect the swarm. This is a two-stage process as once the swarm is collected, the beekeeper will need to leave the box in place (until all the flying bees have returned for the night) and then come back in the evening to take the swarm away. Swarms are then passed on to trained beekeepers to be looked after. This is a much better outcome for the bees than settling in someone’s air brick, loft or chimney. We can only help with honey bees, not bumble bees, solitary bees, wasps or hornets - there’s more information on these other pollinators below.
Other ‘swarms’
If the bees you have seen are coming in and out of small holes in your brickwork these are probably mason bees or other solitary bee species. If there are bees flying near the ground in September, these will be ivy bees, which look similar to honey bees but have more defined stripes. None of these bees are aggressive and you do not need to take any action other than enjoy watching them.
Tree bumble bee activity can sometimes be mistaken for honey bee swarms, when the male tree bumble bees form little clouds of activity around a nest, waiting to mate with the new queens. These furry black bees have a white tail and tawny thorax.
They like nesting in bird boxes and parts of buildings. Nests are best left alone until all the bees have left, usually by the end of July. There is a lot of helpful information about identifying tree bumble bees and other advice here.
Public service
We collect swarms for free as a public service and to help the bees. As we are a registered charity run entirely by volunteers, any donations are always very welcome.
You can donate here
Did you know?
Bumble Bees
Bumble bees are larger, furrier and rounder than honey bees, with more defined colouring. They often nest in the ground, in compost heaps, under sheds or in bird boxes. If you find a bumble bee nest please do not disturb it. They rarely sting and the nest will naturally die out at the end of summer. There are 24 varieties of British bumble bees. For more information about these important pollinators please visit the Bumblebee Conservation Trust.
Wasps
Wasps have distinct stripes of yellow and black. They build nests which they construct out of chewed wood that are round and are fixed to a structure, typically in people's lofts or sheds. We cannot assist with the removal of wasp nests and would recommend that you contact your local pest control company.
Honey Bees
Honey bees are smaller than wasps with less defined colouring. If you have a swarm they arrive in their thousands and will eventually settle, clustering together. They will usually move on of their own accord within 24 hours, however, if we can collect them they will stand a much better chance of survival.
Asian Hornet
The non-native Asian predatory wasp, Vespa velutina (also known as the Asian hornet) is an invasive species from Asia. In September 2016, the National Bee Unit confirmed a sighting of the Asian hornet in the Tetbury area of Gloucestershire - this is the first time the hornet has been discovered in the UK. Since then there have been more confirmed sightings and several nests destroyed, in different parts of the UK.
Preying on insects, including honey bees and other pollinators, it is a significant threat to bee colonies, and other native species in the UK. They are most likely to be seen near bee hives, preying on bees defending
the hive.
If you see an Asian Hornet
Never disturb an active nest. Sightings of the Asian Hornet should be reported through the Asian Hornet Watch app, through an online form or emailed to the Non-Native Species Secretariat with a photograph and location details.
You can find more information about this species alert and further Asian hornet resources on the NNSS website, including the app, alert posters and information sheets.
European Hornet
The UK is home to one native hornet: the European hornet. The fearsome-looking Hornet may not be a well-loved insect, but it is actually much less aggressive than the Common Wasp. It is also an important pollinator and pest controller, so can be a gardener's friend.
The Hornet is a large social wasp that has a brown thorax and brown and yellow stripes on its body, rather than black and yellow. It has an obvious 'waist' between the thorax and abdomen. The similar-looking Asian Hornet has recently arrived in the UK, but has a mainly dark brown abdomen except for one yellow segment, and yellow legs.
Solitary Bee
Most people are familiar with honey bees and bumble bees, but look closely and there are smaller furry bees moving from flower to flower. There are around 20,000 described bee species worldwide. Most of these bees are known as solitary bees with only 250 bumble bee species, 9 honey bee species and a number of social stingless bees worldwide.
In Britain we have around 270 species of bee, just under 250 of which are solitary bees. These bees can be amazingly effective pollinators and as the name suggests tend not to live in colonies like bumble bees and honey bees.