Miracle Bees

So yesterday afternoon I checked on my new hive to see how many bees were still outside the hive because it was getting chilly and rainy outside. I saw a little less than half of the bees still in the package and what was more, they had balled up to keep warm. I knew they wouldn't be moving any time soon, and they needed to be in the hive before nightfall in order to stay warm enough to live.

I suited up and tried to dump as many of them into the top of the hive as I could. I managed to get most of the two clusters into the hive, but there was a handful that just would not go in. Shaking my head and crossing my fingers, I left them for the day.

Bronwyn and I checked them this morning and there were two small balls of bees still in the package, not moving. We thought they were dead. I smacked the hive package on the ground to knock them down and saw a couple of them feebly wave a leg. Since the sun was up I moved them to a sunny spot about three feet away from their new home, hoping that if the sun warmed them up if some might not still be alive.

When I checked after church this afternoon they were all gone out of the package! They lived! They just needed to warm up a bit before they could find their way home. Both hives were looking very busy the rest of the afternoon. Smiles all around!