I know they won't come home. I hope they find a nice hollow in a tree nearby and stay in the neighborhood. And I guess this is goodbye to my original queen, who had a nice blue spot on her back so I could find her. If there's a new queen she'll be unmarked of course. I doubt if I'll ever see her.
Swarming is natural. But beekeepers try to avoid swarms in order to keep the hive strong so it will produce more honey (I guess that's the primary reason). Swarms are said to occur in the spring, often when the hive is crowded, but I just read an article in the April 2011 issue of the American Bee Journal in which the author, Peter Loring Borst (isn't that a great name for a bee expert?), said:
"...given all the 'right conditions,' some colonies swarm and some don't. Beyond that, some honey bee colonies swarm under circumstances that to their owners seem downright foolish. What it boils down to is this: the most you can say is that there are times when bees are more liable to swarm than others."
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You might be able to follow them when they go. It's not easy, though.
I think of swarming as a means of species reproduction. Sure, bees will swarm when a hive is too small for their liking, but I think they also swarm when they're feeling strong and healthy enough to create another colony.
It always seemed to me that it should be the new queen who leaves. But of course only the old queen is capable of laying eggs the minute the first new comb is created.
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