FYI. The quantity of bees in a hive has more to do with their ability to find good food sources nearby, and the suitability of the place they’ve made their home, and nothing to do with their temperament. That size hive would not be considered particularly remarkable in an apiary. A “swarm” of bees is actually just a bunch of bees that split off from a successful hive and are looking for a new home and are typically very docile. Since this colony had a home (these people’s house), it was technical not a “swarm.”