Covered in Bees!

G was off work today so we went to visit our friends in Penicuik.  We had a lovely afternoon of tea and cake and cats.  Just as we sat down to dinner, M got a call about some bees.  They'd swarmed on the side of the Chemistry lab.  There was someone there that knew about bees but didn't have any equipment.  It was pouring with rain so they covered them with a big cardboard box and we all headed out after dinner to manhandle them in to a Hive.

I've never seen a swarm before.  There were a lot of very damp bees.  Once they'd been swept up and bundled in to a sheet they were taken up to the Apiary.  It seemed likely they had misplaced their queen as rather than being in a mass they were covering the sides of the box and the wall it had been propped up against.  Thankfully I had my long lens with me so we stood and watched at a safe distance.  It was fascinating to see but without the queen in the hive, the bees that weren't shaken in to the Hive from the box didn't really want to go anywhere.  They should have all started walking in to the hive towards their queen.  The poor little things were cold and wet but once they started getting bothered they soon found the energy to fly!

A fascinating evening.  We found out today the queen and a small clump of bees had been spotted 30 foot up the wall.