While allergy sufferers struggle through a pollen-laden spring, honeybees are rejoicing and springing forth early across Greater Victoria.
They’re so healthy and happy, the first swarm of the season came a couple weeks early, said Bill Cavers, president of the Capital Region Beekeepers.
“Swarming is a natural way for the bees to reproduce. If they swarm it’s usually two hives out of where there was once one. It’s a natural phenomenon,” he said. It’s still something beekeepers try to avoid, through a variety of avenues including splitting a hive – or faking a swarm.
A swarm happens once a hive starts to get overpopulated. The bees task the queen with laying two or three eggs to hatch new queens and once those get to a pupa stage about half the hive takes off in a cloud that sounds like a lawnmower – with the old queen. And they’ll land anywhere – conveniently in a low tree branch or less conveniently someone’s front door.
“In controlled beekeeping you don’t want to see the bees disappearing over the fence,” Cavers said, noting some neighbours are less than receptive. From the bee perspective, life is healthier, with higher success, in a controlled hive.
This winter was a nice healthy one for the south Island. Cavers said their members found the mild winter of 2024 offered a stunning turnaround from the year before.
This winter saw about a 30 per cent death rate in the hives, which is pretty average. The winter before there was a 70 per cent death rate, caused by a sudden and severe (for here) cold snap.
“Beekeeping is a fascinating hobby, and I think it does a world of good for the environment. But it does require attention and a bit of work – like anything that’s worthwhile,” Cavers said. “You can’t just put a hive down and leave it alone for the rest of the season; it takes regular consistent attention.”
This time of year in particular is good fun, he added, with loads of pollen and nectar for the foragers to load up on.
“The foragers come out and they are lean and they’re fast like a jet,” he said. “But when they come back, they’re like fully loaded water bombers and it’s funny to watch them do face plants on the side of the hives.”
Anyone who spots a swarm can call the hotline at 250-900-5787. The club will organize a collector to come out and assess a swarm, potentially relocating it.
They’ll tackle honeybees and bumbles but don’t bother calling for wasps or hornets.
“Collecting swarms is actually kind of fun – when it’s not your bees,” Cavers said.
Visit CapitalRegionBeekeepers.ca for more information.
