Is it a Honeybee Swarm? (How to Identify Your Visitors)

We get a lot of calls for misidentified bees! Before you get in touch, please use this quick guide to check who has moved into your garden:

1. Honeybees (We CAN Collect These)

• What they look like: Small, slim, and varying from golden-brown to dark grey.

• The Swarm Behaviour: They form a large, tight, distinct cluster—often looking like a giant "beard" or football hanging from a tree branch, fence post, or wall.

2. Bumblebees (We CANNOT Collect or Move These)

• What they look like: Very round, fat, and incredibly furry, often with bright yellow, orange, or white stripes on their tails.

• Their Nesting Behaviour: Bumblebees do not swarm. They live in very small colonies (usually fewer than 200 bees) and love to nest in bird boxes, compost heaps, under sheds, or in the ground.

• Our Advice: Bumblebee nests only last for a single summer, are highly beneficial for your garden, and the bees are incredibly docile. Because they are vital pollinators, they should be left alone to enjoy their short season.

• Bumblebee Conservation Trust 

3. Wasps or Hornets (We CANNOT Collect These)

• What they look like: Bright, distinct yellow-and-black stripes with shiny, hairless bodies.

• Their Nesting Behaviour: They live in grey, papery ball nests in roof spaces, sheds, or holes in the ground. If you have a wasp problem, you will need to contact a local pest control specialist.

How to Contact Us

If you have a confirmed honeybee swarm, please get in touch with us immediately so we can act before they move on to a trickier location.

• Call/WhatsApp: 07364 121884

• Send a Photo: Texting or WhatsApping us a quick photo of the bees is the absolute fastest way for us to identify them and help you!

• What to Tell Us: Your location, how high up they are, and roughly what size the cluster is.

Please Note: For safety and liability reasons, we can only collect accessible honeybee swarms and cannot dismantle chimneys, roof tiles, or structural brickwork.