# Caught this nice swarm on my lunch break today.



## fieldsofnaturalhoney (Feb 29, 2012)

The question is "How long do you want to keep them in a tote, before it has ill effects? They are not in your car, right?


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## Espers (May 4, 2016)

No...not in my car. Dropped them off at home before I came back to work (small town benefits). They are under my porch - in the unlikely case that the sun comes out, they are shaded so they won't roast. 

I don't want to keep them in there any longer than necessary, but may be in the morning or tomorrow afternoon before I can transfer them to a hive.


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## D Coates (Jan 6, 2006)

Congrats on what appears to be a really nice swarm. They may be real itchy to abscond at the first opportunity after being corked up for a day. Don't delay in transferring them ASAP. If you've got a frame of open brood you can steal from another hive to use as an anchor to keep the hive from considering absconding I strongly recommend it. Out of all the swarms I've caught, only once have I lost one using an anchor frame.


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## Espers (May 4, 2016)

Thank you! I do have some brood that I can put in with them.


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## Espers (May 4, 2016)

D Coates said:


> Congrats on what appears to be a really nice swarm. They may be real itchy to abscond at the first opportunity after being corked up for a day. Don't delay in transferring them ASAP. If you've got a frame of open brood you can steal from another hive to use as an anchor to keep the hive from considering absconding I strongly recommend it. Out of all the swarms I've caught, only once have I lost one using an anchor frame.


Got them installed late yesterday afternoon after all. Put a frame with brood in there and a frame that had a little bit of honey. Rain forecast all day today, so hopefully they will hang around and not leave. Thanks for the suggestion.


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## Ruthz (Sep 13, 2011)

I am embarrassed to admit that I have left a swarm, with brood comb, in a ventilated Tupperware tub in my house for three days. Those bees later went on to build a nice hive. So it can be done, but it is not ideal.


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## D Coates (Jan 6, 2006)

Espers, You're very welcome. Nothing stinks like loosing a swarm you've caught. It's a trick another mentioned here (don't remember who) that I started doing. The way the swarm reacts to finding open untended brood and how they instantly start working them keeps them from thinking of absconding. It also gives them a population boost a week or so before they'd actually start via their own queen. It also can let you know if they're queenless for whatever reason if you find queen cells in the middle of the anchor frame when you're looking for eggs 1-2 weeks after capturing the swarm. Good Luck!

Ruthz, stuff happens. Glad to know it can be done but I'll sure avoid it if I can.


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## Miamian (May 4, 2017)

Caught a swarm yesterday i could hear queen piping this morning. I heard if you put a frame of brood they wont abscond i come home and they started to remove the capped brood but left the larvae alone im freaking out. Why would they reduce brood about to hatch


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## Sickdog5 (Jun 8, 2016)

Also heard that if you put ,the queen in a queen clip for a couple days that will keep them from absconding.


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