[AlanHo]

We took some friends for lunch today – to the 11th century Old Bull Inn in Inkberrow which is famed for being the pub featured for the past 50 years in the radio serial “The Archers”.

After a good lunch and a pint of shandy (I was driving) we took them back to their home in Worcester and sat in their conservatory for a coffee and chat. I didn’t hear it – but Libby my wife suddenly stopped her chin wagging and asked what the loud humming noise was. Within seconds she had her question answered – the whole conservatory was enveloped in a huge swarm of bees. The noise and sight was amazing – looking at a bee swarm from the inside.

After about 10 minutes they took off and gathered in a huge flying ball about 10 metres diameter which buzzed round the garden until most of them eventually settled on a fence at the end of the garden – completely covering 4 six by six foot fence panels with a central ball of them about 50 cms diameter - which seemed to roll up the fence and then vanish down the neighbour’s side.  There were still too many of them buzzing about for us to risk going outside for a better view.

Over the next 15 minutes, more and more vanished over the fence and there were only a few flying about, so I ventured out with my wife’s phone in hand and tried to take a picture over the fence – only to find my hand, phone and arm covered by bees which forced me to retreat. Fortunately without getting stung. 

By now our friends had phoned their neighbours who were able to look down from an upstairs window and could see that their composter, located in a side passage, was submerged under a mass of bees. About 30 minutes later the neighbours reported that the bees seemed to have all vanished inside the composter and there were just a few outside. Hence I again ventured to the bottom of the garden and put my arm over the high fence to take some photos “blind” because the fence is too tall for me to see over.  The composter was buzzing - even I could hear it with my poor hearing and I aimed the camera at the noise.

It’s the first time I have ever seen a swarm of bees – made more special by seeing it inside out so to speak.

The quality of the photo is not great because it is difficult to shoot blind with your arm dangling over a fence, and my wife’s phone has only a very basic camera.

[Dazzler]

Wow, you need to be very careful in a situation like that Alan! (as you probably know) Last year a swarm of bees killed several horses here on the North West Coast! 

Swarm of killer bees kill horses | The Border Mail

[Aussie Keith]

Sensational. I keep native bees and mine have been swarming on warmer days but nothing like that.

[eye30]

What no bee puns.......

Ok here is one.....

Libby shouts to alan as he is trying to get a picture over the fence............ be careful honey........

[Surferdude]

Impressive aren't they?
I've seen them swarming twice.
Once at our second floor offices in North Parramatta,Sydney. They appeared outside on the deck our associates used for lunches and morning teas, taking over one of the tables. I have a pic somewhere.
More recently at one of our stores in Woolloongabba (where the well known "Gabba Cricket Ground) is located.
They arrived in the car park and literally took possession of one of the parked customer's cars.
We had to call the council to come and remove them. Brisbane City Council actually has a specialised crew for that job.
My car was parked beside the one they took over and there were plenty buzzing around it as well but I had to go out so I took a deep breath and walked through them, opened the door and jumped in quickly.
As with your hand, Alan, no stings and I managed not to let any in the car. 

[Phil №❶]

Sensational. I keep native bees and mine have been swarming on warmer days but nothing like that.

Is that the true Aussie bee with no sting, AK 

[TheReaper]

Glad you didnt get stung

[Lakes]

Great Alan, just good they were friendly.
i've been stung a few times but i don't seem to be allergic to them. a friend of mine was stung on the side of his face & half his face was swollen & one eye closed like he had been beat up ( like James Packer ) . had to take him to hospital. all the bee's that sting me leave the sting in me. once i was on my way to Queensland & near Grafton with a GF on the back, on my MC , i had the bee go down the kneck of my leather jacket, the pain  took all my self control to ease off the hwy into the dirt side of the road & park, My GF located the sting & removed it. no problem after that. can not imagine what an armful of sting would feel like.

good shot Alan, hope they make a bee hive as i love fresh honey!

[John B]

Quite a few years ago the wife my daughter and myself went to a national park at Port Lincoln South Australia , it was a beautiful place and while the wife and daughter were sitting by the car having some lunch I thought I would explore a little, I was some way away from the car when I accidentally came across a hive , the bees were not impressed and decided to give me a what for, I was of like a rocket hooting and hollering with these bees chasing me, as I got near the car I shouted at the wife and daughter to warn them, What did they do ,only bloody got in the car and locked the doors, after screaming and shouting a few choice words they unlocked the doors and I dived in fortunately for them I did not get stung . I did explain to them in no uncertain terms Bees cannot  open car doors let alone locked one's. They said it looked like I was handling the situation, YEH RIGHT. 

[Surferdude]

I think they all leave the sting in you Lakes. I also think they die because of it.
Might be an old wive's tale but that's how I was taught about them when I was younger.

[panthersteve]

, I was of like a rocket hooting and hollering with these bees chasing me, as I got near the car

So you had to make a bee line for the car 

[panthersteve]

I think they all leave the sting in you Lakes. I also think they die because of it.
Might be an old wive's tale but that's how I was taught about them when I was younger.

Yep, that is how I believe it to be too 

[Phil №❶]

Yes they do, and there's a venom sac attached too. Most people grab it to pull the sting out, envenoming themselves even further. The correct way is to use a cloth an gently brush the sting  opposite to the direction of insertion and don't press too hard. Then wash the area with carb soda, or do whatever The Reaper says.   

[Doggie 1]

I've seen a few swarms over here over the years.
I'd hate to be on a motorbike. 
It's creating a bit of a buzz in the media too.

[Aussie Keith]

Sensational. I keep native bees and mine have been swarming on warmer days but nothing like that.

Is that the true Aussie bee with no sting, AK 

Correct. Here they are swarming.

[AlanHo]

That is not on the same scale as the swarm we saw - there were so many on the conservatory roof and windows it was just like pulling the sun blinds down. there were so many on the doors - it was difficult to see out.

We were all so fascinated by the sight and noise not one of us thought to take a photo....damn.

[Dazzler]

I prefer bees to European Wasps .. They are getting to be a problem down here (they are very persistent and aggressive)
and they love me!   

[rustynutz]

I'm not too fond of them either...

[Phil №❶]

Our poor little friendly native bees are being exterminated by the EU Wasp. Illegitimates.

Good job Keith 

[neptune]

I prefer bees to European Wasps .. They are getting to be a problem down here (they are very persistent and aggressive)
and they love me!   

and do they STING!......ouch......

[Just Rick]

Well I Don't Bee lieve it,I've bee n Stung by a false story like this Bee fore,But as we All know Alan would not Bee stow us a Falsity,I think Bee's are fascinating but try to stay clear of them,as I'm just a we bit allergic.

[AlanHo]

Our friends phoned this morning to thank me for finding a beekeeper who would collect the bees (Aint Google wonderful!!)

The guy came and collected them this morning. He took the lid off the bin and discovered they had already built some honeycomb overnight. He found the queen and placed her in a transport box - whereupon all the bees followed her into the box. He reckoned there were roughly 10,000 bees in the compost bin and he captured most of them. The whole job took him less than an hour.  He will relocate the bees into a spare hive at his farm - which was only a mile from our friends house on the outskirts of Worcester.

Edit

A further chat with my friend this afternoon revealed that the guy has yet to take the bees away - he has left the transport box alongside the composter to enable the stragglers and the bees out foraging for the day to return home and go looking for their mates. He is going to collect the box at dusk today.

When he lifted the lid off the composter the bees were in a large ball suspended from the lid - so he was able to take the lid off his transport box (which already had some honeycomb inside it) and knock the ball of bees off the lid and into the box.
This revealed a 10cm piece of honeycomb on the lid they had constructed overnight - which he gave to the neighbour - who will use the wax as polish.

[eye30]

Hope he obliges with a pot or two of honey

[meehalych]

The wasps and hornets are much more dangerous than bees. There are lot of wasps in here,  one has to keep an eye on them especially when they happen to fly into a flat - a hive may appear in every place.

[Lakes]

I prefer bees to European Wasps .. They are getting to be a problem down here (they are very persistent and aggressive)
and they love me!   

A friend told me about them, when i first went to Tassie about 20 years back. how did they get to Tassie Dazz?
also i saw you have Bumble Bee's down there Dazz, i had never seen them before but was told also see Bumble bee's in NZ too.

[eye30]

Made a bee line for him........

[The Gonz]

Shame you can't harvest their knees - everybody seems to like them.

[Lakes]

 

[neptune]

back in the nineties, I was stung by a wasp and I have never experience instant excruciating pain as what that wasp did to me....... and it stayed on ...the pain that is..... totally different than a bee sting...

[TheReaper]

Shame you can't harvest their knees - everybody seems to like them.

good one