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OT: Bee Swarm Issue

Hi all,

I seem to have acquired a good sized honey Bee swarm in a cracked plaster wall surrounding my front porch. Luckily we noticed them through a window before opening the front door into the densely Bee infested airspace just outside.

Other than on TV, I've never seen a Bee swarm, or hive for all that matter. However, in my opinion, they appeared to be rather agitated, flying very fast and aggressively in a huge dense ball... 30 plus feet in diameter. The area immediately around the opening was covered several Bees deep.

I don't think they've been there long enough to have much of, if any kind of hive established... earlier in the afternoon, they weren't present

After Sunset, they calmed down considerably, and other than a few flying strays, all seemed to have retreated completely within the cavity... I then took a LONG stick and gently eased two (6" X 6") pieces of old cut up tshirt material soaked with spray 'Outdoor Fogger' (claiming to be effective against 'Bees, Wasps, Moths, and many other pests') into the opening.

I'm not really interested in killing them, as I hear the Bee population is becoming an issue, and I don't want a million dead Bees rotting in the wall. I'm hoping to 'stink up' the cavity enough to persuade them to go elsewhere.

Does anyone here have any suggestions on anything else I can do to expedite their departure?

Until gone, things like front door use, and mail delivery won't be possible, and I'd rather not blow cash on exterminators or Beekeepers if possible...

Thanks in advance!

Erik

Reply to
Erik
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The beekeeper might be free. You should call around. Karl

Reply to
kfvorwerk

As with the other reply, find a beekeeper. The swarms are temporary - they're looking for a home (hive-sized). A beekeeper can just pluck the queen out, and into a hive - the rest of the swarm will follow. We did that in our last house. A migrating swarm is an impressive sight indeed.

Joe

Reply to
Joe

On Mon, 20 Apr 2009 00:11:51 -0700, the infamous Erik scrawled the following:

If you patched all the escape holes with poisoned t-shirt material, you may have succeeded in killing them already. They need to get out to feed and collect pollen daily.

Call your local Animal Control folks. They'll probably have a list of beekeepers who take new "members", all probably free of charge.

Reply to
Larry Jaques

I left the opening fully open, as I'm only interested in evicting them...

Going to do that now.

Erik

Reply to
Erik

There's a product called "Bee Go". Its butyric acid. Smells like vomit. Its used to get the bees away from honey for harvesting.

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This will chase them right outa there.

Karl

Reply to
Karl Townsend

I think you're supposed to call them before you poison the bees?:-)

Reply to
ATP*

Yow! That stuff is nasty. A high school friend cracked the lid on a bottle of that in the high school chemistry lab stockroom. The look on his face was something, then the stink hit. It cleared the classroom.

Be prepared to evacuate for a while.

Pete Keillor

Reply to
Pete Keillor

On Mon, 20 Apr 2009 08:00:37 -0700, the infamous Erik scrawled the following:

That's good.

Bueno.

Reply to
Larry Jaques

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