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ST. GEORGE — Honeybees are social insects with an extraordinary work ethic and produce a number of products, honey being the most well known, but they are also the super-pollinators of the planet, and without them life on Earth would be very different.
With spring in full swing in Southern Utah, honeybees are busy gathering pollen and stocking their hives and can sometimes be seen forming giant, somewhat alarming clusters which are often found on tree branches or on houses, and while this swarming behavior may seem alarming, it's necessary for their survival.
There are two types of bee swarms, said Casey Lofthouse, a commercial beekeeper and former Washington County bee inspector.
The most common type is a reproductive swarm, which happens when a colony of bees outgrows its nest or hive. A new queen will be hatched, and the original queen and about two-thirds of the worker bees will fly off together. The bees will cluster together for a time, and this mass of bees is what is commonly found hanging on a tree limb or other structure in a large ball.
"What they're doing in a cluster is waiting for the scout bees to find a place for them to call home," Lofthouse said. "Like in a tree, in a house, or wherever."
Read the full article at St. George News.
