Cast forming flat circle on the ground

[SixFooter]

Just been out to a small cast which was on a tarmac area Behind some houses.
It wasn't a ball of bees I usually see but a circle of bees, 1 deep on the ground.

Has anyone any idea why the bees would do that?

They were very lethargic, so I sprayed a bit of syrup on them. I left a box there and a few bees started to go in. No fanning that I could see. I'll go back later

 

[Ian123]

It just happens to be the spot the queen landed as to lethargic it’s a bit chilly and gusty with me today and they could have been out for a while. Ian

 

[Barbarian]

I was called to a swarm earlier this week. It turned out to be a cast in a shallow circle on a lawn. I collected it on 2 DN1 frames and put them in a nuc box which I took to my back garden.

I opened the entrance the following morning. Bees were coming and going that day, BUT a cup-sized cluster of bees formed on the ground below and near to the nuc. I suspected that the cast had 2 virgins.

The following day, I briefly opened the nuc and saw plenty of bees and some started wild comb. I tried to collect the cluster with the intention to find and kill the virgin but no joy. I threw the cluster onto another part of the garden ... any further action wasn't worth the hassle.