[Swarm List](/swarm-list) / Delaware For Delaware beekeepers # The Delaware Swarm List 58 honey bee swarms have been reported across 4 Delaware cities this season, each one a free colony for whichever beekeeper gets there first. Swarmed texts or emails you the moment one is reported near your apiary, free, with no membership and no waiting list. [Get Delaware swarm alerts](/auth/beekeeper-signup) 58 Swarms reported this season 679,000 Bees in those swarms, estimated 754 lb Potential honey from those bees, estimated 7 minutes Typical time before a swarm is claimed ## Where the swarms are, by county Shaded by what was reported this season, with the busiest cities marked. Counties in grey have nothing on file yet, which usually means nobody nearby is set up for alerts, not that swarms aren’t happening there. Swarms reported 2 3-56 None yet Busiest areas Wilmington 34 Newark 21 Smyrna 2 Middletown 1 Swarms reported in each Delaware county this season, busiest first, with the total on record. County | This season | On record New Castle County | 56 | 106 Kent County | 2 | 10 ## What a season of Delaware swarms is worth Retail nucs ran $185 to $325 across the suppliers we checked. At the bottom of that range, the 58 swarms reported in Delaware this season come to roughly **$10,730** of bees, arriving free to whoever collects them. The comparison isn’t exact: a swarm arrives without drawn comb, without a laying-proven queen, and it can abscond in the first week. Most beekeepers who work swarms treat two caught colonies as worth about one bought nuc, which halves the Delaware figure to around $5,365 and still makes a swarm call worth answering. ## How fast you need to be in Delaware A reported swarm in Delaware is typically claimed within 7 minutes. That’s faster than any mailing list or monthly meeting can move, and it’s why a county swarm list stops working once more than a few people are on it. Alerts reach your phone as the report lands, so the question is whether you’re free that afternoon, not whether you heard in time. ## When Delaware swarms Across the 2 counties we track in Delaware, reports peak in May, and alert volume follows the same curve: the weeks either side of that peak are when most of a season’s swarm calls arrive at once. This year is running 7% warmer than the same date last year by accumulated growing degree days, so expect the season to start earlier than it did. ## Replacing winter losses in Delaware US beekeepers lost 30.3% of their colonies over the 2025-26 winter, and replacements get ordered in January and February for an April pickup. Swarm season follows close behind, and this season Delaware has had **58 honey bee swarms reported** so far. A nuc ordered in February arrives as a known quantity on a known date, and it’s the right call if you need the colony working a specific crop. A caught swarm costs nothing, arrives on its own schedule around May, and comes with the forager population a package doesn’t have. Most beekeepers rebuilding after a bad winter end up doing both. [Compare nucs, packages and caught swarms on cost and timing](/nuc-vs-package-vs-swarm). ## Everyone in range gets the same report at once ### A county swarm list - A page of names and phone numbers, ordered by whoever is top - Goes stale between annual updates - Usually needs association membership and a meeting - A homeowner who reaches two people who can’t go calls an exterminator third ### Swarmed - Every nearby beekeeper gets the same report at the same moment - Text, WhatsApp or email, with location and photos attached - First to claim it gets it, no queue position - No membership, and you set the radius you’ll drive [Start getting Delaware swarm alerts](/auth/beekeeper-signup) ## Found a swarm rather than looking for one? This page is written for beekeepers. If bees have turned up on your property, [free swarm removal in Delaware](/bee-removal/delaware) lists the cities local beekeepers cover, and collection costs nothing. ## Common questions **How do I get on a swarm list in Delaware?** Most Delaware swarm lists are run by county beekeeping associations or the state apiary office, and getting on one usually means joining the association first. With Swarmed you sign up, set the area you're willing to drive to, and every swarm reported inside it comes straight to you. There's no membership requirement and no waiting for the list to be updated. **Does it cost anything to receive Delaware swarm alerts?** No. Alerts are free for beekeepers. Swarmed is supported by contributions from beekeepers who choose to pay what they think it's worth, not by charging for access to swarms. **Can I replace winter losses with caught swarms in Delaware?** Yes for rebuilding numbers, no for a colony a specific crop depends on. US beekeepers lost 30.3% of their colonies over the 2025-26 winter, and replacements are usually ordered in January and February for an April pickup, while swarms arrive later and on their own schedule, peaking in May. In Delaware, 58 honey bee swarms have been reported to Swarmed this season, so the supply is there for anyone set up to respond quickly. **When is swarm season in Delaware?** Reports across the 2 Delaware counties we track peak in May. Alert volume follows the same curve, so the weeks either side of that peak are when most of a season's swarm calls arrive. **How quickly do I need to respond to a swarm call?** In Delaware a reported swarm is typically claimed within 7 minutes. Alerts arrive the moment the report is submitted, so you find out at the same time as every other beekeeper in range. **Is catching a swarm a real alternative to buying a nuc?** Roughly two for one. A caught swarm costs nothing and comes with local genetics, but it arrives without drawn comb or a laying-proven queen and can abscond in the first week, so beekeepers who work swarms tend to treat two caught colonies as worth about one purchased nuc. They also don't need ordering in winter for a pickup date months later.