It’s funny what people think will make bees leave an area.  These people had bees in the water valve box.  They didn’t know they had them until they trimmed the trees/bushes in the area.  They were able to get the lid up without getting stung. Then they put the stick under the lid so the bees would leave.  When they didn’t they called me. It was a small swarm that was starting to make itself home in the box. Once I shook them into the nuc they all left the valve box and came home with me.

We belong to a SciFi club.  One of the members called and was almost screaming, “you gotta get over here right now!  I have bees in a couch on my lanai.”  I got her calmed down, then packed up my stuff and went over. As we were waiting on her to come down and let us in we were talking to the guard. She told us of a woman a few floors down from our friend. The woman found bees in her dresser on the lanai, she decided to vacuum them. She got stung. Then she sprayed the outside with bug spray.  The bees left and she was happy. Right after that my friend called and said a “huge” swarm of bees had just come up and gotten into her couch.  We had to cut the back of the couch and remove the plywood backing to get to the bees. After we got them, we told her to wait a few days and then she could throw out the old raggedy couch.

The guy called and said he had bees in a guest house, but he would only be here for the weekend.  Furthermore he was only available on Sunday, and he had to catch his plane home at 1230 that day.  So we started at 8 am and were done before 11 am.  That is the fastest we have ever done a job.  We also removed a bird nest that was next to the bees.
Working that fast causes problems though.  We both got stung several times. If we were to go slower we may not have.

If only the people weren’t going to bbq right next to the bush, they would have never know there were bees in it.  They called and said a swarm had just arrived and were hanging out in the bush.  They were just firing up the webber right next to the bush.  When I got there, they had the webber with flames and smoke about 3 feet from the bees.  The bees were going nuts. I asked him to move the grill and the bees calmed down.  Even though I was less than 2 feet from the bush I still couldn’t see them.  After some trimming I shook them into the nuc, waited for the rest to get in and left.  All in all a great swarm catch.

I have done lots of removals from hot tubs.  They are not easy because the bees build way up inside where it is hard to reach.  I had to remove 1/4 of the side panels of this tub to get to them.  Then I had to lie on my back and reach up to get the bees.  Then I had to get up and put the comb in the frames.  I was tired when I got done with this.  The owner is an artist  and has work in Honolulu Hale.

I got the call about bees at a ball field. As I was removing them I talked to the guy.  He told me he was a scout for the Texas Rangers.  He and some other people worked to keep the ball fields open and in good repair so kids would have a place to play.  We need more people like him and his group.

The owners of this home had just come home from church and were sitting on their lanai peacefully drinking coffee when a cloud of bees came overhead.  For people who have never see a swarm in flight it can be scary. They watched as the bees landed in the large bush, then they called us.  We explained what had happened and we would save the bees.

We have removed more hives from this set than I can remember.  It is styrofoam and wood. The styrofoam gets bad and lets bees in.  This one had two hives near each other. We had to use the lift to get to them. If you notice one guy is wearing a t shirt and no gloves. The other guy is not using gloves. I couldn’t do that. If I tried I would be in the hospital within 10 minutes !  We got both hives and everyone was happy.

Honolulu Country Club is a gorgeous place.  The entrance driveway has waterfalls on both sides, the place is very well maintained.  We have gotten two calls from them so far. This one was in a small palm tree very near where the first swarm was last year.  However, this one was much more difficult to remove.  The bees had gotten in-between the branches and  were hanging on for dear life.  Shaking them out was not working, so I reached in a scooped them with my hand.