Do you remove swarms?
Yes, we offer FREE honeybee swarm removal in Hudson and surrounding areas (Stow, Streetsboro, Kent, Cuyahoga Falls, Twinsburg, Macedonia and many other Summit County and Portage County locations). Call us at 330.422.3939!
I have a swarm – what do I do!?
First – don’t panic. A swarm is chaotic but surprisingly docile. A honeybee will die if she stings you, so she’s really not interested in doing that unless it protects the hive, the honey, or the babies. A swarm has no hive, no honey, and no babies – so it is unlikely to sting (they may warn you to back up by “bonking” you in the head).
Second – call us (330.422.3939). It’s important to act fast because a swarm is only resting while scouts look for a permanent home. Once they find a location they like, it will pack up and disappear just as fast as it arrived.
What does a swarm look like?
This is a swarm: | This is NOT A SWARM: |
This is a honeybee: | This is NOT a honeybee: |
Why do honeybees swarm?
A bee swarm is the natural reproductive strategy of a honeybee colony. A strong colony that survives the winter will pack the hive with honey, split in half, and attempt to start a second colony. Beekeepers use several strategies to prevent our colonies from swarming, but you would be surprised how many wild honeybee colonies exist. Swarms typically occur between mid May to mid June in NEO.
How do you “remove” a swarm?
Each removal is a little unique. For easy to reach swarms we might just shake them into a box. For hard to reach ones, we may use ladders and poles. That said, our favorite method is our custom made “bee vac”. It uses juuust enough suction to pull the bees into a hive box, without harming them.
Unfortunately, for insurance reasons we do not offer “cut out” services (any removal that requires us to cut open your home, building, or trees). At this time we are unaware of any beekeeper in northeast Ohio that offer cut outs.
What do you do with a swarm after you catch them?
We set them up in a new colony, and isolate them from our main bee yard until we are able to properly inspect and treat them. The Varroa destructor mite is a lethal, but treatable, parasitic mite that we want to keep out of our bee yard. We will monitor the queen to make sure she is healthy, and replace her with one ours if not. Once we are confident the colony is healthy and thriving, we will move them to our main yard.
I don’t have a swarm, but I want to help the bees.
Call us! We would love to put a “swarm trap” on your property if the conditions are right. A swarm trap is a small box that is designed and baited to look and smell like the PERFECT home for a swarm scout. We will hang it from a tree branch, and any hopefully a swarm in your area will find it. If you notice bees coming and going from it, just give us a call and we’ll come pick them up.