honeybee removal?

[lilithchilde.livejournal.com]

Ever since we moved into our apartment in mid-October, my roommate and I have been sharing space with a hive of honeybees. The hive appears to be at least partially outside the building (near our living room window), and in the fall we barely noticed them. Our landlords assured us that they'd deal with them in the winter, when the bees were hibernating, but they've been in no hurry to do so.

Ever since the cold weather hit, agitated bees have been making their way inside. It's not a healthy situation for anyone involved (humans or insects), as you might imagine. Our landlords have finally informed us that they intend to have the hive exterminated. We weren't sure about the legality of this, given the threatened status of honeybees in recent years, but apparently they've cleared it with the city.

My roommate and I are concerned, and are hoping to at least investigate alternative options - preferably, removal by a beekeeper. Can anyone recommend local keepers or services who we might be able to contact for information/price quotes? Thanks so much!

Comments

[wombatbanana.livejournal.com]

We used Bee & Wasp Removal Services (http://beeguy.com/) for yellowjackets last summer and were quite happy with the service. (The guy's a beekeeper, so the best part is the jar of homemade honey he includes with the bill.)

[ron_newman]

I don't have contact info for either of these people, but ...

Somerville Garden Club lecture “A Year in the Life of a Beekeeper” last year

Urban Beekeeper: Surviving the winter months with bees, written by a Somerville beekeeper, published in the Somerville Journal in 2008

Best Pest

[vonelftinhaus.livejournal.com]

They used to raise bees also- or is it keep em I'm not sure

[lonelyholiday.livejournal.com]

My old landlords own Best Pest Control (http://bestpest.com/), based in Porter Square, and Rod has been featured in the Globe for his beekeeping (http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2006/10/01/in_the_yard_on_the_roof_151_keeping_the_bees/). Seems like just what you're looking for.

Plus, they're really great people. Give 'em a call!

Re: Best Pest

[lonelyholiday.livejournal.com]

Oh look, you posted this while I was typing up my comment below. :)

[lizzielizzie.livejournal.com]

I think this is the guy I used when I owned a house...he was excellent and worth every cent.

Side note to the OP: The problem with honeybees is the honey. Once they are exterminated, the nest has to be located and physically removed, otherwise the honey rots and attracts all manner of vermin. I'd check and make sure your landlord plans to do this.

[yakshaver.livejournal.com]

Even if it is legal, it would be a bloody shame to exterminate an urban hive. All those flowers that make Somerville in the spring so beautiful? Where would that be without the honeybees?

[bobobb.livejournal.com]

Get in touch with Noah at Boston Best Bees: http://www.bestbees.com/ he could help you find a good way of removing them without killing them or might know of someone.

Please don't have them exterminated. Bees are at enough risk as it is right now, and I like eating bee-pollinated fruit :)

[ron_newman]

This Best Pest webpage (2nd paragraph) suggests that they prefer to recommend other services rather than do this themselves.

[lilithchilde.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I'll definitely give them a call tomorrow.

[lilithchilde.livejournal.com]

I've seen reference to this, and I have a feeling my landlords don't know about it (they seem fairly clueless about the whole matter). Thanks. :)

[lilithchilde.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[lilithchilde.livejournal.com]

Well, more recommendations can't hurt. :)

[lilithchilde.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that's exactly how we (my roommate and I) feel about it. I really hope we can convince our landlords.

[lilithchilde.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

That's exactly why I'm looking for this information - I'm hoping I'll be able to provide a compelling alternative to my landlords, as I'm pretty sure they have the final say.

[icecreamempress.livejournal.com]

One thing that might help convince them is that only beekeepers really know how to relocate hives well. Exterminators who aren't experienced with honeybees rarely have good success, because they use the strategies they use with wasps; honeybees and wasps are very different, and what works for wasps often doesn't work for honeybees.

So experienced bee handlers are the most efficient choice, as well as the most ecological.

[davelew.livejournal.com]

How are you sure that these are honeybees? There are something like 20,000 different kinds of bees, and I know I can't tell them all apart.

[lilithchilde.livejournal.com]

I'm not 100% sure. We've hung on to some of the dead bees, and taken pictures; I'd imagine that any service capable of removing the bees should also be able to identify them first.

[c011een.livejournal.com]

I second Noah! He's a bee biologist AND a beekeeper. And he's an all-around swell guy :)

[stellasirius.livejournal.com]

honey bees are not native to the new world. before they were introduced by europeans, flowers were pollinated by mason bees, bumble bees, flies, animals, etc, etc.

so to answer your question, the flowers would still bloom in the absence of honey bees, since they co-evolved with other types of pollinators. even in the freak disappearance of ALL pollinators would not immediately affect how many flowers bloom, simply how many fruits are produced.

[crschmidt.livejournal.com]

I have a friend who works with bees regularly (Keeps beehives, etc.), lives in the area, and would be willing to help you with bee removal if you're interested. Unfortunately, he couldn't contact you directly as he doesn't have an account, but you can contact him via email as dilinger at queued dot net.

[lilithchilde.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I've sent him an email.

[ron_newman]

Perhaps these new people can help?

[lilithchilde.livejournal.com]

Hey, thanks for the heads' up. :) I actually contacted them back in February, but they don't do bee removals - in fact, they're more oriented towards installation. They were very nice and encouraging, though; if I were going to voluntarily start keeping bees, I'd probably go to them!

In any case, our situation has been resolved, thank goodness.

[ron_newman]

How did you finally resolve this? Future readers of this post, who have the same problem, will be interested.

[lilithchilde.livejournal.com]

Online research told us that, in fact, most exterminators won't deal with honeybees, for this reason: you can't just kill them and leave them in the wall. The honey will eventually mildew, smell terrible, and attract vermin. (Apparently it can also cause structural damage after a time.) The walls had to be opened, and all the honey/comb removed, as well as the insects - beekeepers are the ones who know how to do this (and they can move the bees without killing them, as well).

When my landlady saw our research, and discovered that her usual exterminator wouldn't handle honeybees, she hired a beekeeper (http://alsbirdsandbees.com/index.html) from the list we'd compiled. Alan's great because he does carpentry as well as well as the actual extraction (so you don't have to hire a separate contractor). He and his colleague opened up two small sections of our ceiling and removed between 100-120 pounds of honey, as well as a few dead bees (the rest of the hive having mysteriously vacated the premises sometime between mid-February and mid-March - nobody was really sure why, it was apparently unusual). They also figured out how the bees had come into the wall in the first place, and blocked it up.

We are now bee free! An interesting experience, on the whole, if a little stressful. (Alan and his friend really were great, though. The hive turned out to be located in a different section of the ceiling than we'd initially thought - in fact, it was in the room where we'd moved all our furniture, to get it out of the way! They managed the whole honey-extraction process in quite a close space without damaging a thing, or leaving any mess apart from a little bit of plaster dust. The ceiling could use repainting, but the patch is so inconspicuous that you don't really notice if you're not looking for it.)

[ron_newman]

Glad to hear it all worked out well. I hope you at least got to eat some of the honey!