66 
Beekeeping 
mass expose this gland and the wings are moved rapidly so 
that it seems probable that the odor which is emitted and 
dispersed attracts the flying bees to the cluster. 
If the cluster has been formed in an inaccessible place, the 
beekeeper often finds it desirable to have the bees move to 
another support. The cluster will gradually move (more 
readily upward) into the dark interior of a box placed nearby, 
this movement being more rapid if a piece of comb, or 
better, comb with brood, is placed inside the box (Fig. 47). 
If the queen has failed to fly or has been prevented in some 
way, the swarm usually does not cluster but returns to the 
hive, and if a cluster does form it usually breaks up in a few 
minutes. 
In a large apiary when swarms are issuing frequently, 
many swarms will settle on one particular support. The 
only plausible explanation for this peculiar action is that 
the support retains an odor acquired from contact with the 
swarm which acts as an attraction to other bees in the act 
of swarming. This lends considerable weight to the theory 
that clustering is a response to an odor stimulus. Bee¬ 
keepers sometimes take advantage of this phenomenon 
and provide an easily accessible and readily handled sup¬ 
port for the clusters. The swarm catcher (Fig. 47) is readily 
adapted to this purpose. In Langstroth-Dadant 1 (p. 218) 
is the statement that swarming bees cluster on any dark 
object that resembles a swarm in shape, especially if that 
object affords adequate support. This presupposes that 
bees are attracted to the clustering place through sight, for 
which supposition there is little evidence. In this discussion 
an old comb is mentioned as a favorite support, but in this case 
it cannot be claimed that sight is the only means of perception. 
Supposed aids to clustering. 
An old practice at the time of swarming was to beat tin 
pans, ring bells or otherwise to create a din, in the belief 
1 Langstroth-Dadant, 1907. Langstroth on the hive and honey bee, re¬ 
vised by Dadant. Hamilton, Ill., 575 pp. 
