Prime Swarm
Lexikon
The first swarm of a colony, which leaves with the old, mated queen.
The first swarm of a colony, which leaves with the old, mated queen. It occurs as soon as the first queen cell is capped, usually on one of the following days and always in suitable weather.
About half to two-thirds of the bees leave with it, mainly the young ones. The prime swarm is therefore vigorous and builds up quickly if it is caught and hived in time.
If a young queen leaves afterward, this is called an afterswarm. These are always smaller than the prime swarm but weaken the colony considerably and are prevented by breaking surplus queen cells.