The Bee Storm

CJ called me at work the other day to tell me that there was a bee tornado in the bee yard. She videoed it. I was afraid it might be a swarm and told her to watch if they swarmed and landed somewhere nearby. Bees generally don't swarm this late in the season, especially if they have not filled their hive space to capacity. The Shakespeare hive is considerably smaller than a regular hive would be, so swarming will definitely occur. I have to decide if I want them to get away and reestablish the feral bee population in north Alabama or if I want to catch all swarms and use them to strengthen my colonies and/or increase them. I don't think this is a swarm, but it may be a preamble to one...All the same, it's easy to understand why CJ and the kids don't feel like playing in the garden.