Since we've cut down all those old pine trees around the apiary, it has been clearly visible from our garden. This is very fortunate because I wasn't planning on going over to check the bees today until I happened to glance over there after work today and noticed this:
A swarm of bees hanging on the side of one of the hives! It was already quite late in the day (about 5pm) and this not what I expected to find here after the swarm control measures we've been using!
It was fascinating to see them close up - completely peaceful, just waiting there until the scout bees find them a suitable new home.
It's hard to guess how many bees there are here and it's impossible to tell which colony they swarmed from - we're just lucky that they decided to hang around here long enough for us to do something about it.The problem is that I have nothing left to house them in! It was a foolish mistake but I thought that my swarm control was adequate and I don't have any spare nucs left. After taking these pictures I went back in to phone my local expert beekeeper. It's a bit embarrassing to have to ask for spare equipment as we've been trying to prepare for all eventualities but there's nothing else to do - with the cold nights we're still getting here, it's not likely that this swarm would survive until tomorrow morning unless it is properly housed.
