Two days before our package arrived, a swarm moved into the hive!
Bees had been checking out the hive for weeks, but it looked like they were just robbing the remaining honey. I stopped thinking it was scouts looking to relocate their hive. But then – Lo did the sky darken and fill with the buzzing of thousands of honeybees! We followed them to the front yard where they filled the sky, and then the yard, and then settled on the hive itself. They bearded on the outside, they covered the top bars under the lid, and they rolled out from the door. It was awesome. One week later they are still there, so they appear to be staying.
Swarm filling the yard
Swarm bees bearding the hive
Sustainable Scientist 
What luck! So what happened with the package?
I’m writing of that right now!
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We haven’t seen any swarms on our place yet. Last year we had 3 or 4 by this time. What do you think the evolutionary reason is for the bees swirling around so much during a swarm. It’s an awesome sight. You can stand in the middle of it and just experience the excitement, but I’ve often wondered why the bees expend so much energy?
I’ve not thought about that…it is interesting to think that a good majority of those bees are probably house bees that have never left the hive except for elimination. Maybe they’re just not good flyers!