Swarming or bearding?

[tejas]

Yesterday, I went with my parents to look at a farm they are thinking about purchasing. The old farmhouse has a metal roof and I noticed bees had made a hive in the soffit of the home. I was sitting on the porch when the bees appeared to be swarming. There were thousands in the air; eventually they formed a cluster on the eve very close to where they had come out. My question is were they swarming or did the attic with the metal roof just get to hot and they had to get out to cool the hive?

[Beth Kirkley]

It's very possible they were just trying to cool off. That would be my first guess, mainly because you said they stayed so close to the entrance.

Beth