What’s cool: Honeybee swarm season usually begins concurrent with tax day, says president Beth Conrey. The swarms are not aggressive; they’re part of the natural process of spring bee activity. Basically, it’s a sign of that needs to off-load some population to the equivalent of a suburb, she says.
Spot a swarm: You’ll hear them before you see them, Conrey says. “We get them on bikes, on trees, on fences, on the ground, but most land 2 to 10 feet in the air, on something. It’s a whirling vortex of bees before they land; they’ll be loosely whirling and swirling along like a little dust devil. And then when they stop, the queen lands first, and everybody else lands on top of her. They’ll form a football-shaped mass, and it’s just honeybees.”
Be cool yourself: “Bees are defensive, not aggressive … and they also gorge on honey before they leave the hive, because they don’t know when they’re going to get groceries again. So they’re kind of fat and happy, too.” Don’t spray a swarm with water or insecticide or throw rocks. Roughly a third of the human diet is honeybee-pollinated, Conrey says — and
Who to call: If you find a swarm, beekeepers can often come to collect it quickly. Hotlines: northern Colorado, 970-213-3099; Denver metro, 303-916-7398; Colorado Springs and nearby, 719-528-5483
More:coloradobeekeepers.org
