Do you have bees in your wall, fence or tree? Do you want them to be removed and safely relocated to one of our apiaries? Don’t panic or spray them with poison as we will not want them after being sprayed with chemicals. Look over the below questions and then contact us to discuss the situation.
- Are you sure they are honey bees? Yellow jackets and wasps are often mistaken for honey bees. See this identification guide for more info.
- How big is the cluster and what does it look like? Honey bees cluster as one big mass of bees. If they are a small cluster around a knot in a tree or hole in a wall they are no longer a swarm but an established hive. If the ‘ball’ has a gray color or papery look then it is a wasp nest.
- Where is the swarm located? How high is it? Swarms on fixed locations such as fence posts and walls can’t be shook or cut off as they could if located on a small branch.
- How long have they been here? Swarms that have been there for more than a few days are probably an established hive.
How much does removal cost?
We offer free swarm removals in the Syracuse area and only a modest gas charge for surrounding areas. The cost of hive removals (AKA cutouts) varies based on your location, difficulty and time required to remove the bees, number of visits, and possible other factors. Please feel free to contact us with any other questions or to schedule a removal.
Why do honey bees swarm?
The swarm is the honey bee’s natural method of reproduction. When conditions are right typically the old queen and about half the bees in the hive will take off in a huge cloud of bees, a swarm. They will fly to a predetermined location, often the limb of a tree, and settle as a large cluster of bees. This is what you often may notice first, a clump of bees ranging in size from a softball to a basket ball and sometimes larger, on the branch of a tree, in a bush or clinging nearly to any other surface. Normally this is not a permanent home and they will move on within a few days. Bees preferred home is the hollow of a tree or a similar location such as eves of a house or between the joists in a wall.
If you can’t wait for the bees to move along on their own, or they have moved inside a tree or into your house it is time to contact us. Exterminators will only spray the hive with poison but wont remove the honey or wax comb. The comb with honey, brood and pollen must be removed or it will rot and welcome insects and critters. Plus without the bees keeping up the hive the wax and honey will melt and start dripping out of your walls.
