When Bees Swarm

16 July 2010 922 views 11 Comments

After weeks of thick marine layer, the sun was finally shining on the Santa Monica Farmer’s Market on Wednesday morning. The farmers were out in force selling flowers, meats, veggies and cheese. People were happily toting bagfuls of tomatoes, peaches and Blenheim apricots. Chefs were pulling carts filled with fresh produce.

But there was also some Farmer’s Market drama when a swarm of bees appeared in front of a 2nd Street business.

Coincidentally, the bees were hanging out right behind Rose from Energy Bee Farm…she sells honey every Wednesday at the Farmers Market. She’s got a modest table filled with honey jars, tubs, tubes and bears. Now, I arrived after the bee drama had taken place. But Laura Avery, who saw the action first-hand told me all the gory details.

When the bee swarm hit, somebody called Vector Control – the county group who handle these kinds of things. “Danger signs” and orange cones were set up on the sidewalk and a trap for the bees was hung from a nearby bush… it’s a small triangle shaped cardboard things where bees check in but they don’t check out. It was like a sad, bee crime scene. After a little while there were hundreds of the poor little guys on their way to bee heaven. The sad part is that they died in a clump, surrounding their queen.

Bee Crime Scene

Rose was absolutely devastated. She told me that bees swarm when the weather gets warm and the sun is shining. They’re just looking for a new home and they fly in a swarm to protect their queen. She told me Vector Control has no interest in saving the bees, just getting rid of them.

Dead Bees

Later in the morning, people were coming up to the manager’s desk lamenting the mass murder that took place. One person even scrawled “killer” on the warning signs.

According to Rose, bees are nothing to be scared of. She says that people have seen too many movies with killer bees and they’re petrified of these harmless creatures. In fact, when a bee stings you, you get a little pinprick, but they die immediately afterwards. And bees have had a tough time lately, what with colony collapse disorder and global warming ruining their lives.

If a swarm visits you, she suggests that should do is call a beekeeper to come and catch the bees – they’ll happily turn them into honey which you can slather on toast or stir into your tea.

Here are a few you can call:

Bill’s Bees 818-312-1691
Ken Harris 562-693-5402
Energy Bee 310-670-5760
Honey Pacifica 562-938-9706, 562-305-0577
Kirk’s Urban Bees 323 646-9651

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359111 CommentsWhen+Bees+Swarm2010-07-16+20%3A00%3A32Harriet+Ells »

adampopescu said:

…KILLA BEEZ.. http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2010/07/madison_county_bee_farmer_is_t.html” target=”_blank”>.http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2010/07/madison_county_bee_farmer_is_t.html

# 16 July 2010 at 9:35 PM

Gustavo Arellano said:

Don't forget the Backyard Beekeepers of OC!

# 17 July 2010 at 9:56 AM

Silvia said:

I think we also have to be mindful that LA is home to africanized honey bees which are more aggressive & can pose a danger if they're disturbed. Just last month a backhoe operator was killed in Encinitas, even after fleeing to an outhouse. In crowded areas with elderly & small children it's best to err on the side of caution.

# 17 July 2010 at 10:55 PM

Erik Knutzen said:

Thanks Good Food for this excellent report. What a shame. This swarm could have gone on to produce honey for the farmer's market! As a new "backwards" beekeeper here in LA I've moved eleven colonies in the past year and can tell you that the "Africanized" thing is a myth. Swarms, especially, are harmless. In most cases you can approach them without protection and simply knock them into a box and take them to your apiary.

Silvia-The backhoe operator in Encinitas disturbed an established colony not a swarm–there's a big difference and it doesn't matter if they are African or European bees. Don't bother their home and they won't bother you. Swarming bees don't have a home to defend.

And thanks Good Food for suggesting that people call a beekeeper not vector control.

# 18 July 2010 at 1:09 AM

SarahKCRW said:

Speaking of backwards bee keepers, here's a yahoo group you can join, they have a bee hotline and you get posts from them on a regular basis that provides you with a lot of helpful information. http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/BackwardsBeeke…

# 18 July 2010 at 5:07 PM

Sundry said:

The bees didn't even get one strike before they were out. Sad that officials are so fearful of something so natural and necessary.

# 18 July 2010 at 8:40 PM

David Sneiders said:

HB swarms are the most docile & easiest to catch when at a low position. Even supposed "killer" honey bees in a swarm are more docile than when having a hive w/ babies & honey stores to protect. What a waste of time & money much more pollinators that could have produced excellent raw organic honey!

# 20 July 2010 at 5:32 AM

Maurice vickers said:

It's rather ironical that, as a beekeeper, I've learned just about as much about people's reactions to bees as bees themselves. It seems that we the people have been conditioned to be fearful of many things. Of course, the powers that be can more easily control us through our fear than any other means devised. Maurice Vickers, Santa Monica

# 20 July 2010 at 3:20 PM

Sherry said:

I recently came home from work to find hundreds of bees on my driveway dead and stumbling around on their last legs. It looked like a bee holocaust, dead of poisonous fumes — just beneath our beautiful old fig tree. I asked a neighbor what happened and he said tenants next door had complained to their landlord about a wasp nest and he in turn had called an exterminator. They wiped out an entire colony! All of which is to thank you for posting a list of urban beekeepers who would happily relocate a colony to a place where they would be warmly welcomed. I recently read that every third bite of food we take is thanks to bees. (Citation: http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2007-05-04/new… Thanks again.

# 22 July 2010 at 1:49 AM