the stimulus of increased temperature and incoming food, the nu- 
merical strength is increased by the daily emergence of young bees 
in excess of the death rate, until plans are made by the bees for 
the departure of the queen and a number of the bees to build a home 
elsewhere. This is called swarming. (Fig. 5). 
Fig. 5. A large New Jersey swarm (original). 
In anticipation of this event, drones have been reared and later 
queen cells appear. The rearing of drones is not usually considered 
by practical beekeepers as a sign of swarm preparations, but the 
building of queen cells, except supersedure cells, is taken as a 
dependable swarm preparation sign. Rarely colonies under cer- 
tain conditions will abandon swarm preparation even after having 
started swarm queen cells. The queen cells are not all started at 
one time, but their ages will vary several days. When the oldest 
of these cells is sealed, the swarm departs on the first favorable 
day. With the first or primary swarm goes the old queen, a con- 
siderable number of drones and thousands of workers of flying age. 
17 
