A swarm on a branch and a colony in your wall are two completely different calls.
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Which situation do you actually have?
The right response depends almost entirely on where the bees are and how long they have been there. Work out which of these describes your property before you call anyone.
A swarm hanging in the open
A dense cluster on a branch, fence post or wall, often football-sized or larger, with bees flying around it. This is a colony in transit with no comb and no honey to defend. Swarms are typically at their least defensive in this state and frequently move on within a day or two on their own.
Bees entering a hole in the structure
Steady two-way traffic in and out of a single point — a weep hole, a soffit gap, a gap around a pipe, a knothole in fascia. This means comb inside. The longer it runs, the more comb and honey there is and the bigger the eventual job.
An established colony you can hear
Audible humming through a wall or ceiling, sometimes a damp or discolored patch where honey has begun to weep through drywall. This is a mature colony and it needs a full cut-out, not a treatment.
Bees on flowers, no nest anywhere
Foraging bees working your landscaping are not a pest problem and no treatment is warranted. Honey bees forage well over a mile from their hive, so their presence says nothing about a nest on your property.
Ground-nesting solitary bees
Small individual holes in sandy soil with a single bee each. Polk County’s sandy soils support various solitary ground bees. They are docile, short-lived, excellent pollinators and essentially never need control.
It might be wasps instead
Smooth glossy bodies, narrow waists, paper nests or a cavity with no comb visible — that is a wasp or yellowjacket, and the approach is different.
Bees going in and out of your wall?
One call reaches a licensed, local exterminator who covers your address — and a real person answers, 24/7.
Free to get matched. No obligation. The licensed operator gives the quote.
Why bee work in Florida is handled differently
Africanized genetics are established in Florida
Africanized honey bees have been present in Florida since the mid-2000s and are established across much of the state. Visually they are essentially indistinguishable from European honey bees without laboratory analysis; the difference is behavioral — a substantially more defensive response, in greater numbers, triggered at greater distance and sustained longer. This is the core reason Florida guidance discourages homeowners from disturbing an established colony and why some colonies that would be relocated elsewhere are handled as an eradication here. It is a genuine public-safety consideration rather than a sales tactic, and any operator who dismisses the question is not being careful.
Beekeeping in Florida is a regulated activity
Florida requires beekeepers to register their colonies with the state’s agriculture department, and the state runs an apiary inspection program. If live relocation is what you want, ask whether the person collecting is a registered beekeeper. It is a reasonable question and a legitimate beekeeper will answer it without hesitation. Structural pest control work, by contrast, sits under the FDACS pest control licensing framework — which is why some bee jobs involve two different people with two different credentials.
Leaving comb in a wall causes the real damage
This is the point most often missed. Killing a colony and walking away leaves the comb, brood and honey stores in the cavity with nothing maintaining them. Without bees regulating temperature and humidity, honey ferments and weeps, staining and eventually soaking through drywall and ceilings. Abandoned comb attracts wax moths, hive beetles, ants, roaches and rodents, and the residual scent of the old nest site actively attracts future swarms to the same cavity. A complete job means opening the cavity, removing comb and honey, cleaning, and sealing — which is carpentry as much as pest control.
Polk County gives bees a long swarm season
Florida’s extended warm season means swarming activity runs across a much longer stretch than in northern states, commonly from late winter through into summer with secondary activity later. Combined with Polk County’s mix of agricultural land, groves, pasture and residential landscaping, there is ample forage and ample cavity space in housing stock. Practically, if a cavity in your home has hosted a colony before and was not properly cleaned and sealed, expect it to be found again.
What a proper removal involves
Assess the situation and location
Swarm versus established colony, how long activity has been observed, where the cavity sits, and whether access is from inside or outside. This determines whether relocation is realistic.
Relocation where genuinely viable
Open swarms and some accessible colonies can be collected live by a registered beekeeper. Where defensive behavior, location or structural constraints rule it out, the operator should tell you plainly rather than promising a relocation they cannot deliver.
Open the cavity and remove everything
For structural colonies: opening the wall, soffit or ceiling, removing all comb, brood and honey, and cleaning the cavity. Skipping this is what produces the honey-weeping and secondary-pest problems later.
Seal and exclude so it does not recur
Closing the entry point and any comparable openings — weep holes screened, soffit gaps closed, penetrations sealed. Old nest sites attract new swarms, so exclusion is the part that makes the job permanent.
What decides the operator’s quote (we never set prices)
- Swarm collection versus structural cut-out — Collecting an accessible open swarm is a short job. Opening a second-story wall, removing established comb and repairing it is a substantially larger one.
- How long the colony has been established — Comb volume grows with time. A colony found in week two is a far smaller job than the same colony found in month eight.
- Whether repair is included — Ask explicitly whether the quote covers closing up and repairing what was opened, or only the bee work. This is the most common gap between expectation and invoice.
Pricing is set by the independent FDACS-licensed operator or beekeeper after inspection — never by us. Free to get matched, and you owe nothing until you accept their own quote. The cost guide explains the general factors.
How the bee removal dispatch works
Full transparency: Lakeland Exterminators is a dispatch and matching service, not a licensed pest control operator. Your request routes by ZIP to an independent, FDACS-licensed operator covering your part of Polk County; they own the inspection, treatment, pricing and any service warranty under Chapter 482, Florida Statutes. Verify any operator at the FDACS license search before you hire — honest companies expect it.
If bees are actively defending and anyone has been stung repeatedly, get everyone indoors and away from the area first and call for medical help if there is any systemic reaction. Do not seal the entrance, spray the opening, or attempt to smoke a structural colony — each of those reliably makes the situation worse, and sealing a live colony in a wall drives bees into the living space.
Bee removal questions, answered straight
Can the bees just be relocated instead of killed?
Often yes for an open swarm, sometimes yes for an accessible structural colony, and sometimes honestly no. Live relocation by a registered beekeeper is the preferred outcome where it is safe and practical, and many Polk County operators will connect you with one. What prevents it is usually defensive behavior consistent with Africanized genetics, a location that cannot be safely accessed, or a colony so integrated into a structure that removing it intact is not possible. A straightforward operator will tell you which category yours falls into rather than promising relocation and then not delivering it.
There are bees in my wall. Can I just spray the hole?
Please do not. Two things go wrong. First, spraying an entrance rarely reaches a colony deeper in a cavity, and it does reliably provoke a defensive response at the point where you are standing. Second, even if it worked, it leaves comb, brood and pounds of honey sealed inside your wall with nothing maintaining it — which produces fermenting honey weeping through drywall, stains, odor, and a secondary infestation of wax moths, beetles, ants and roaches. The cavity has to be opened and cleaned out, and that is the actual job.
How do I know if they are Africanized?
You largely cannot by looking — they are visually near-identical to European honey bees and definitive identification requires laboratory analysis. What is observable is behavior: an unusually large defensive response, bees pursuing people well away from the nest, and reaction triggered by vibration such as a mower or trimmer at some distance. Given that Africanized genetics are established across much of Florida, the sensible working assumption with any established colony is to keep your distance and let someone with protective equipment make the assessment.
Is a swarm in my tree dangerous?
Generally far less than people expect. A traveling swarm has no comb, no brood and no honey stores to defend, and bees in this state are typically quite docile — they are clustered around a queen while scouts look for a permanent cavity. Most swarms move on within a day or two by themselves. Keep people and pets away, do not spray it or throw anything at it, and if it is somewhere genuinely problematic, a beekeeper can often collect it easily and will frequently be glad to. If it is high in a tree and out of the way, waiting a day is a reasonable plan.
What happens if I do nothing about a colony in the structure?
It grows. A colony that has been in a soffit for a season builds substantially more comb than one found in its first weeks, which makes the eventual removal larger, more invasive and more expensive. Over time the risks compound: honey weight and moisture damaging drywall and ceilings, staining, secondary pest infestation of the comb, and the scent of an established nest site drawing future swarms to the same cavity even after this colony is gone. Bee colonies in structures do not resolve themselves, and the cost curve moves in one direction.
Who do I actually call — a beekeeper or an exterminator?
It depends on the situation, and this is a fair thing to be confused about. An accessible open swarm is a beekeeper call. A colony established inside a wall, soffit or ceiling generally needs someone who can do the structural work — opening the cavity, removing comb, cleaning and sealing — which is where a licensed pest control operator, sometimes working alongside a beekeeper, comes in. Describing what you are actually seeing when you call, including how long the traffic has been going on, gets you routed correctly the first time.
Get it assessed before it becomes a wall repair.
One call reaches a licensed, local exterminator who covers your address — and a real person answers, 24/7.
Free to get matched. No obligation. The licensed operator gives the quote.
Disclosure
Lakeland Exterminators is a dispatch and matching service. We connect Polk County callers with independent, FDACS-licensed structural pest control operators. We are not a licensed pest control operator. We do not perform bee removal or relocation, set prices, issue warranties, or carry pest control trade insurance. All pricing, scheduling, treatment plans, warranties and service terms are determined by the independent FDACS-licensed operator dispatched to your address under Chapter 482, Florida Statutes.
Same-day and 24/7 emergency services are subject to provider participation, location, technician availability, and demand. Availability is not guaranteed and may vary by market and appointment capacity.
License status of any operator you connect with is publicly verifiable at the FDACS license search.