Canadian apiary store owner foils honey heist by marauding swarm of ‘robber bees’ | Canada
A Canadian beekeeper has described the discharges of thousands of “thieves’ bees” when they got off in a cheeky attempt to steal honey.
Christine McDonald, who has aptitudes at the Rushing River in the town of British Columbia, said that she had entered her shop to find her invaded by the swarm.
“I think it is the most panicked that I felt … There are thousands of bees, I don’t know where they come from and I have to protect all the honey,” she told CBC News.
The raids of rival hives are common after hot and dry summers, when a “nectar gap” emerges between spring flowers and autumn flowers. The largest bee colonies also need more food to collect and store.
“Fall beekeeping is very intense – trying to help bees to bend against other bees and wasps and keep the catering stores for which they have worked so hard,” said McDonald, who has already seen raids on his outdoor hives – but never on his store.
Experts warn against the attempt to stop a “flight frenzy” and suggest covering the hives with damp blankets to keep the invaders away.
“When a hive is stolen, the invasive bees kill bees and can even kill the queen. They tear open wax cells to reach honey inside and can eliminate large amounts of honey very quickly,” said a beekeeping guide. “Worse, the heartbreaking open cells distribute the smell of honey from afar, which attracts other invaders such as wasps, yellow jackets and hornets. These insects are even more aggressive and will quickly kill all the bees left in the hive.”
McDonald says that she avoided the disaster by throwing a tarpaulin on equipment and products, but ended up “sacrificing her bathroom” in order to trap the invasive bees.
Leaving the lights on in the room, she attracted the bees of their target. McDonald then traveled the store in search of entry points, discovering that the bees had entered by a gap as part of the door, which has since been sealed.
She said it had taken four or five days before the voracious bees kept trying to return to her shop.
“I think they learned that no, there is no more food here,” she said. “We cannot enter.”
