DRIPPING SPRINGS BABBLE: BEE SMART

BEE SMART

The random bumble bee here and there has been buzzing around our lavender since they began to bloom earlier this summer. Quite a different storybook sight than that reported by KXAN yesterday when an 85 year old Austin man sustained hundreds of stings from a swarm of honey bees. Per the news story, one bee expert surmises it may have been a moving swarm hiding in a grass patch that the victim inadvertently mowed over. Coincidentally, on Tuesday we received an email from a Babble reader who had what she thought was a hive of bees in a tree near her house. She was looking for advice on what to do, which is when we turned to a local hobbyist beekeeper for advice. The reader had provided a photo, below, which the beekeeper was able to identify as a swarm, not a hive, and went on to advise that bees are peaceful — they are just looking for a new home. But, says our beekeeper, it's "always a good idea not to get up close and bug them. If the swarm isn't too high up, it is pretty easy for a beekeeper to remove. However, the swarm may not stay long, so they might fly off before removal can be arranged. On the other hand, some swarms will stay for a day or two until making a decision about where to go."

The local beekeeper turned out to be exactly right. We followed up with our reader today and, indeed, the swarm had moved on. The swarm did not even linger long enough for another local beekeeper hoping to relocate them to form his own hive to make organic honey. For more information on honey bees, swarms, and safety tips, Texas A&M has a Honey Bee Information site at honeybee.tamu.edu.