Possible “suicide swarm” brings out the beekeeper
Beth Farnsworth
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) – An usual sight this time of year brought out the local beekeeper.
A small beehive about the size of a softball was discovered this week, tucked into the corner of a window frame on our back patio.
Nick Wigle with Super Bee suspected it might be what he calls a “suicide swarm” or, a group kicked out of their hive. He said this is a tough time of year for bees as they’re preparing for winter.
Wigle and his partner, Julio, used a little smoke to mellow out the huddled group then went in for the catch using a small, rectangular orange box.
“We’re gonna come into our box here and what we’re looking for is to see if there’s a queen in here,” Wigle said while gently filtering bees through his fingers. “So, that’s mom, she’s just a little bit bigger. So there was a queen in there, she just fell when I played with ’em.”
Wigle said unlike yellow jackets, honey bees only sting when threatened or have something to defend.
The bees captured inside the plastic box clung to the sides, flapping their wings and emitting a scent to draw in the others.
Wigle used a gentle vacuum to collect the stragglers. Once back at his Super Bee Rescue and Removal business in the hills of Santa Barbara, he would release this small swarm together so they could strengthen before the cold weather moves in.