Bees in the Wall!

In 2002 we first noticed some honeybees around the front bathroom window.  Then I realized they were flying in and out of a small hole where the wood had rotted alongside the window molding.  It didn't take us long to realize that there was a colony of bees inside the wall.  It was an uninsulated wall (old house, mild climate), so there was room enough for the bees to move in and be quite comfortable.  For two years, they didn't bother us and we didn't bother them.  Sometimes we could smell the honey that must have been inside there.

Then we needed a new roof, and the roofers refused to go near the house until the bees were removed.  So I called some experts and got one who agreed to come over.  He was especially glad to hear that I wanted to keep the bees, i.e., move them to a hive in the backyard, rather than get rid of them.

For me, originally a NYC boy, the idea of keeping bees was so far out that I just loved it.

Here are some shots taken on that long hot day in September 2004 when we opened the wall to reveal maybe 60,000 bees and over 100 pounds of honeycomb.

All photographs on this page are copyright © 2004-2009 Jay R. Keller, all rights reserved.

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Last edited March 22, 2009