A honey bee swarm still hanging in the open, on a mirror, fence or palm frond, is usually a short visit anywhere in Broward County, and every bee leaves alive. Shaken or brushed into a vented box with its queen, the cluster gets time for its fliers to march in while a thermal camera sweeps the nearest eaves. Then a beekeeper takes the box. Spotted one at dinnertime? (954) 429-5133 picks up around the clock.
Swarm or Nest? Quick Clues
- A dense, dangling clump of bees with no wax visible anywhere.
- A few bees on the surface shimmy and dance while others come and go.
- It hangs from something exposed: a mirror, fence rail, palm frond or boat top.
- It arrived recently. If it has hung there over three days, look under it for pale new wax.
What That Cluster Is Doing
A swarm forms when a crowded colony splits: the old queen departs with a big crowd of workers, they pile onto the first handy perch, and scouts go off to inspect enclosed cavities. The stopover rarely lasts past three days, and with no brood to guard, most swarms are mellow.
Spring is the main swarm season here, sometimes trailed by smaller afterswarms. Africanized honey bees, established across South Florida, swarm more often than other honey bees, and a bumped or hosed cluster of theirs can turn defensive fast.
Perches We See Around the County
Swarms stop wherever the queen lands: a side mirror, a chain-link or horse fence, a condo balcony, a palm frond, or the T-top of a center console tied up behind the house.
Low clusters are quick work. A palm crown may need a lift, a boat is its own job (boat and marina removal), and balconies bring building rules (condo and high-rise removal).
Swarm parked on a mirror, rail or T-top?
Snap it from across the yard and send it while the bees are still outside.
Inexpensive Today, Costly Next Week
While the bees still hang outside, the job is collection only: no cutting open, no cavity cleanup, no repairs. The risk is the scouts. If they pick a fascia gap, a loose soffit panel, a gable vent or a crack in the block, the cluster moves in together and starts drawing comb.
Then it becomes soffit and eave removal or bees in a wall: an opening, a cleanup, and our own contractors patching and painting. A swarm parked beside your eaves deserves a call today.
While You Wait for the Crew
- Bring kids and dogs inside and keep everyone well back.
- No hose, bug spray or broom. Wet or swatted bees break formation and scatter.
- Hold off on mowing or leaf blowing nearby; engine noise riles bees.
- If it is on your car, leave it parked; driving off scatters bees across the street.
Several stings, a puffy face or a tightening throat: call 911 first. Already being stung? Use our 24-hour emergency line. Bees at the pool afterward? See why bees drink from pools.
What's Included and What Changes the Price
Part of every job
- The whole cluster boxed alive, queen included
- Time for stragglers to find the box before the lid goes on
- Thermal camera check of nearby soffits, vents and wall gaps
- Any new wax on the perch scraped off, and the swarm delivered to a beekeeper
What moves the price
- Height: a fence post versus a palm crown, upper balcony or roofline
- Whether the swarm has started comb or slipped partway into a gap
- After-dark and weekend emergency trips cost more than a planned weekday stop
Expect roughly $300 to $400 when the cluster sits on a fence, shrub, mailbox or parked car we can reach from the ground; height adds to that. If the bees get into a soffit or wall first, opening, cleaning and rebuilding can climb into the thousands. For a likely range, text a picture to (954) 429-5133; the pricing page explains the rest.
Compare job types on the pricing page.
How a Swarm Pickup Goes
- Read your photoThe picture tells us swarm or established nest, and whether to bring a tall ladder or a lift.
- Confirm it is still outsideWe look for comb and run the thermal camera along nearby eaves and vents, in case part of the cluster went in.
- Drop the cluster into a boxOne sharp shake or a soft brush moves the bulk of the bees, queen included, into a ventilated box. A small branch can be clipped and lowered.
- Let the fliers catch upBees still in the air follow the queen and walk in. Once they settle, the lid goes on and the box rides to a beekeeper's apiary.
Where Swarms Turn Up in Broward
- Fort Lauderdale
About 165 miles of inland waterways put a boat behind house after house, and a T-top or console cover makes an easy rest stop.
- Davie
Horseback riding is common in Davie, so fence rails, trailers and run-in sheds are never far from a passing swarm.
- Coral Springs
More than 50 city parks mean play structures, dugouts and bleachers: open perches right where kids gather.
Questions About Bee Swarm Removal
The cluster on our fence has been there two days. Will it move on by itself?
Usually within a few days, once the scouts agree on a cavity. The real question is where it goes: near a house that may be your soffit, an attic vent or a neighbor's wall. Boxing it outside costs far less than pulling a colony from a structure later.
Could I hose it off the car or hit it with wasp spray instead?
Spraying tends to break a swarm apart without killing all of it, and survivors with the queen can still move into a gap on the house. It also riles an Africanized cluster. Boxed alive, the bees leave in one piece.
Bees balled up on the T-top of our boat: can they come off without a scratch?
Yes. Boats along the canals of Lighthouse Point or Fort Lauderdale catch swarms on T-tops, rails and canvas. We brush the bees into a box instead of prying at anything, then check console hatches and lockers for stragglers.
We had a swarm last week and now there is another. Why?
Either the parent colony sent an afterswarm, or it lives close by in a tree hollow, a wall or a neighbor's roof. A thermal scan can help find it, and tree and palm removal or humane hive removal handles the nest itself.
Box the swarm before its scouts settle on your eaves.
Point your phone at it from across the yard, text the shot to (954) 429-5133, and the quote is free.