Capturing and moving swarms of bees

Bees belong, like wasps and ants, to the order of hymenoptera. They feed on other insects and are the main demographic regulator of the earth’s insects.

By foraging, they carry pollen from the flowers and produce honey; so it is not a pest.

How do you definitely recognize a bee (facing the wasp or hornet)? What is its life cycle? Is his shot dangerous? These are all questions to which we provide professional answers.

Description of the bee

Apis mellifera, is an insect of the order of Hymenoptera

Only the workers produce honey. Thehoneybee (Apis mellifera) is a black-striped yellow hairy-bodied insect with a small waist.

It also has two pairs of coloured wings with dark ribs. They allow it to fly in every way possible.

Its eyes allow it to view at almost 360 degrees and its antennae serve as odor sensors.

The bee has a trunk that “sucks” the nectar of the flowers and two mandibles, with which they build the wax alveoli in which they lay.

His stinger, a defensive weapon, is retractable

Bees form a highly hierarchical community:

• The Queen,
• The workers,
• drones.

They group in swarms.

Lifecycle of bees

The bee lives in society in the hive. Only the queen, fertilized by the drones, lays the eggs (about 1500 a day) of future generations. She usually lives five years. These eggs are protected by feeding bees that will also feed the larvae.

Worker bees measure 1.2 cm, while the queen measures between 1.5 and 2 cm. The drones, the males, appear more massive. They are only there to ensure the reproduction of their species and fertilize the queen.

The royal jelly in the hive?

From the larval state to the end of her life, the queen will be fed exclusively to royal jelly, which is also the food of all the larvae of the hive, without exception, for the first three days of their lives.

During these three days of intensive feeding, the larvae multiply their weight by 1000!

From the fourth day, male larvae and most female larvae are fed a larval porridge, consisting of fermented pollen and nectar.

They will become the bumblebees and workers of the colony.

Only the larva destined to become queen will receive royal jelly. This food with specific hormonal functions is at the origin of the differentiation of the female larva into queen.
At hatching, 21 days later, the worker larvae are fed by the bees.

If the colony becomes too large for the swarm, the young queens leave the nest forming a swarm with workers and drones to create another hive.

Don’t confuse swarm and hive

Swarming is a common phenomenon in bees. It is the natural mode of reproduction and dispersal of bee colonies in nature. It takes place mainly in the spring, before or after honeycombs:

• the insect colony is divided in two,
• half leaves the usual place with a queen to form a kind of dense cloud, sometimes devastating, and moves to another place.

A swarm of bees can include between 20,000 and 80,000 individuals. At the sight of so many bees, we are entitled to panic.

The hive is not necessarily this practical cottage whose roof is lifted to recover the frames from which honey flows. It is also the name of the structure built by bees in nature, in a hollow of a tree or any suitable place.

Can a swarm of bees be harmful?

The bee is not harmful, on the contrary, it contributes to the good continuity of the life cycle. Bees, feeding on nectar, pollen and honey, allow many plants and fruit trees to reproduce.
Some professions skillfully use swarms of bees to pollinate their crops.

The risk of stinging

Only the worker bee has a stinger; weapon to protect the swarm and the queen.

She does not attack men unless she feels unsafe. On the other hand, when a bee stings, it dies because it leaves its stinger in its prey.

In case of a bee sting, it is important to keep calm. Watch the sting carefully:

• The bee sting causes redness.
• The stung area heats up, then the tissues start to swell.

The bee sting is painful and even if it sounds worrying, this pain will subside and then disappear in a few hours or at worst after a few days.

• Put cold compresses on stung areas
• Take painkillers.

If allergies to bee stings, fevers or local infections can occur then consult a doctor without delay.

Who to prevent in case of swarms in your home?

Bees establish their hive in rural or rural areas.
For the inhabitants of these areas, bees are friendly insects. They promote the pollination of fruit trees and flowers.

In addition, the honey they produce is very popular with all. Swarms of bees therefore pose no danger to the inhabitants. However, some suburban areas see swarms in their gardens.

In this case the exterminator is the right person to reach

 

The professional exterminator picks up the swarm and moves it

A beekeeper or bee capture exterminator is essential to safely capture and move swarms of bees.

Upon arrival, the bee capture exterminator or beekeeper professional 100% identifies the nature of the bee species you have reported. Then it gives you the most appropriate advice in your situation. And if the swarm of bees is hanging from a branch, there is a good chance that it will go away on its own.

But if you really have to capture and move them, the professional has several processes:

• Use already used hives and move the swarm, so the conditions are in place for another swarm to stay there.
• Numbing bees by smoking them
• Attracting the bees to a wax frame containing honey in a new cabin, the bees move.
• Honey can also be replaced with propolis or wax. These three elements combined form, in a trap, an adequate climate for the proliferation of swarms of bees.
• Some people use other odors. Thus, they use either lemongrass, lemon balm or verbena. Still others use anise or dried fragrant plants.
• Exterminators also use swarm attracters. These are essences based on alcohol and maceration of dried fragrant plants.
• There are also ointments-swarms. These ointments are often.

After the swarm was captured and moved, the exterminator cleaned up the area where they had built the hive. The place needs to be cleaned properly, as other bees may come to be attracted by the smells.

If this is in the house, the cavity will be condemned with polyurethane foam.

Choose an exterminator that specializes in catching and relocating bees.

Check that it

• Has an authorization from the Quebec Ministry of Wildlife and Parks for the capture and relocation of insects and wildlife,
• Has a C5 licence from the Quebec Ministry of Sustainable Development; And by following Environment Canada regulations,
• Has a work plan
• It uses certified professional technicians to capture swarms of bees,
• bees, identifies the source and measures the intensity,
• It uses the appropriate capture method.
• It intervenes with total discretion.
• Gives you a written guarantee on the effectiveness of its capture of swarms of bees.

And you, have you experienced the installation of swarms of bees?