I got a call from Matt, who had a beehive in a wood pile.
He texted me a picture, and yup, it looks like a woodpile. We also noticed a tire at the bottom of the woodpile. After seeing the picture, my friend Dave felt that the bees were in that tire, and he was correct.
We had to remove all the wood off of the tire to expose the beehive to remove it. The bees could have been more receptive to our plan. They were not.
They started with their "GO AWAY" attitude right away.
Unfortunately, it was 50° and a little overcast which didn't help their mood. We are in the first week of January and it is a chilly time to be relocating. They must not have noticed the warm and pretty beehive box that will be their new house.
Once we removed all the wood from around the top of the tire, there was a colossal beehive right in the center of the tire. However, there was more to come, much more!
Now that the beehive is exposed, they let us know we had overstayed our welcome.
They opened up the can of whoop-ass on all of us. But, of course, using the smoker on the bees at this point does nothing. So we still gave it a shot for stings and giggles.
Once we cut the combs out from the inner tire, we had five frames completed and in their new hive box. However, the inside of the tire had just as many combs, if not more. This giant beehive would quickly fill our 10-frame Langstroth box.
We got a lot of the honeycomb framed up for the bees and all of their brood and combs containing bee bread and pollen.
These ladies were stocked up for the winter. There were even drones present and comb that had drone cells in them. It is January, after all!
We love when homeowners want to participate in the process. They get to see firsthand everything that we do to save the bees. This hive was a monster and seeing this removal as your first had to be overwhelming. Matt and Grant stayed the entire time, which was about 2 hours, give or take.
We were all covered with bees.
They were hanging onto our bee suits and enjoying the heat we were giving off. It was a pretty cold day, and they were more than welcome to hang out with and all over us. Not that we could do anything about it. The bees were firmly in charge at this point and kept letting us know the entire time.
We used all ten frames, and the bees had all their belongings in the box. So now it was time to find the queen.
She stayed hidden to the very end when she finally crawled out of a small pile of bees on the ground. She was placed in the queen clip, with a few of the bees to clean her up and keep her warm. She had some honey on her, but her attendants will make quick work of that.
Now for the rest of the colony to enter the hive box to be with their queen, and that's game. The queen bee was released a day later and fully joined her massive colony.
They will stay in Matt's backyard for a day or two, and then we will relocate them to the Henderson, Nevada, apiary.
A big thank you goes out to Matt and Grant for their help and the fact that they wanted to save the bees.
The younger generation is "getting it" regarding live bee removal. These honeybees were saved from extermination, so it's a great day.
We all had a fun time, stings included.
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Betsy and Pete
Las Vegas, Nevada
About Us: The Authors
We're Betsy and Pete, passionate Las Vegas beekeepers trained by a master in the field. With hundreds of successful bee and bee swarm removals under our belts, we're not just experts; we're enthusiasts committed to the well-being of these incredible pollinators.
We manage dozens of beehives, both natural and honey-bearing at our Joshua Tree Preserve.
Our Commitment to Excellence
Education is an ongoing journey, especially in a dynamic field such as beekeeping. That's why we continually update our knowledge base, collaborate with other experts, and stay up to date with the latest advancements in bee control methods and beekeeping practices.
We also provide top-tier beekeeping supplies, offering everything a beekeeper needs, from beginners to experts.
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