Swarm Survival?

[wildbeekeeper]

Someone asked me the other day while I was removing a swarm what the survival rate is on "feral" swarms....  Meaning, if we beeks were not around to collect them up and give them a good home, whate are the survival rates of a swarm left on its own to find a new home?

As a side note, I went to pick up two swarms yesterday.. on the second swarm the homeowner wasnt home adn wanted to wait till he got there in 15 minutes.....5 minutes before he was to show up the nice bundle of bees turned into a large cloud of bees and got really loud....pretty cool i thought... but knowing they were off to another home I quickly cut the branch of bees off of the shrub placed it in my swarm box and 30 seconds later that cloud was in the box as well....Im pretty sure I got the queen :)  lol !!

[Irwin]

They all move into house's so JP can cut them out :-D

[Kathyp]

They all move into house's so JP can cut them out

that's what i tell people who want to know about letting the bees do their "natural" thing.  call me now, or call me later when they make a home in your wall.   :-D

[Robo]

I have read that only 20-25% of swarms survive the first winter.   Don't ask me to quote where I read it, I don't recall, but it was a technical paper not a forum.   I also realize climate could play a big part,  but although the south has very mild winters compared to us up north,  we don't have the SHB/ant/....  other issues that they have.