Bee colonies can be located in unusual but common places such as bird boxes, possum boxes, letter boxes, house walls, roof cavities, sheds, dog houses, shoes, cars, outdoor speakers and any other small “Bee” spaces. Some beekeepers will only collect swarms while others will also remove established colonies that have already built comb.
Bee swarm collectors for the Canberra Region can now be found on the Amateur Beekeepers Australia Website. The people listed will be Beekeepers who are current members of Amateur Beekeepers Australia (ABA) and will also, most likely, be members of the Canberra Region Beekeepers Association, depending on postal code.
All Beekeepers have had the opportunity to purchase Public Liability Insurance for swarm collection thought the ABA, please confirm this when you contact a beekeeper.
While some Beekeepers will collect swarms for free, others may charge a small fee to cover their costs but this is considerably less than you will pay to have the swarm poisoned by a pest exterminator. Live removal of established colonies (bees that have been in a location for some time and have built comb) requires specialist skills and is generally a paid job due to the time and effort involved. Please discuss this with the Beekeeper when you call.
While the Canberra Region Beekeepers Association has been in the process of affiliating with the ABA, not all collectors may have transferred their details to the ABA system. If you are unable to find a beekeeper thought the ABA portal, you may use the following list. However, it is a legacy list and will become increasingly out of date. The list is scheduled to be removed in August 2024.
How to advertise as a Swarm Collector
If you are a current member of the Canberra Region Beekeepers Association and want to advertise your services, then login to the ABA portal and update your details.
If you no longer wish to advertise on this list, please email canberra.membership@beekeepers.asn.au.