| Honeybees are the only type of social bee that establish perennial colonies that may survive a decade or longer. These bees forage on pollen and nectar from flowering plants and use these materials to produce the honey that will feed the colony through the winter months. Waxy honeycombs will fill the nest cavity, a fact that makes removal of honeybees from buildings a messy chore. All honeybee colonies produce queens and drones in the spring. These reproductives mate, and the queens may "abscond" with a number of workers to start new colonies. These swarms may be seen clustered on a tree branch, a fence, or a building as the bees rest before flying off again to find a suitable nesting site. Because hundreds of bees are part of this swarm, people are often concerned about the possibility of the bees attacking. Usually, the bees in these swarms are docile and nonaggressive unless vigorously disturbed. |