The workers, who at other times forage for pollen, nectar or water, now set about seeking a new site for their colony. They usually leave their hive in late spring or early summer. In this season, pollen and nectar are plentiful, temperatures warm and the Sun in the sky longer. These conditions provide the necessary environment for a bee community to leave the old hive.

In order to store energy before departure, the bees setting out to establish a new colony fill their stomachs with as much honey as they can, because they will have no time to visit flowers. As a result of this feeding, their abdomens expand so much that their bodies lose the elasticity necessary to use their stings.94 This means that the bees are exceptionally peaceable-important for the safety of human beings. Bearing in mind that about half the colony will leave during swarming, an obvious danger would otherwise be posed by 20,000 to 30,000 aggressive bees.

A swarm leaving the hive, with the old queen in the middle of the swarm. The colony will wait on the tree until the scout bees show the other members where the new hive is located.

When the new queen is about to emerge from her cell, the old queen bee leaves the hive accompanied by a group consisting of worker bees and a few drones. After this swarm leaves the hive, it forms a cluster, often rather like a bunch of grapes, on a nearby branch or projecting object.95 The queen is in the middle of this mass. The workers literally form a wall around her with their bodies, thus ensuring her safety.96 As the bees come together in this disciplined manner, the odor unique to the colony soon forms.

As already mentioned, every worker has a scent gland in its body which it can use for marking flowers whenever it wishes. This gland is externally invisible when not in use. Yet the bee can expose it when it wants, whereupon it exudes a scent. The scout bees use this to mark new places they find. Bees are exceedingly sensitive to the scent of their own colony, and the scent left by the scouts can be perceived even from considerable distances.97 The bees are thus able to find their new destinations easily.

A swarm of bees waiting on a tree to make their nest. When the scout bees find a site for the new hive, this mass will disperse.

The pictures to the side show a swarm regulating the temperature of the mass. Under cooler conditions, the workers clump together tightly and provide less internal ventilation, in order to conserve heat (far left). Under warmer conditions, they spread out in order to cool down the center of the clump.

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• 94. Karl von Frisch, Aus Dem Leben Der Bienen, p.59
• 95. Thomas A.Sebeok, Animal Communication, p.237
• 96. Karl von Frisch, Aus Dem Leben Der Bienen, p.61
• 97. Peter J.B. Slater, The Encyclopedia of Animal Behaviour, Facts on File Publications, New York, p.120

This article is based on the works of Harunyahya www.harunyahya.com