Undocumented Honeybee Feature

 We’ve all read abut the dramatic decline in the population of honeybees over the last couple of years.  There are a variety of possible reasons that have been put forth for their disappearance, but, whatever the reasons, there is a very real cause for concern.  So, it is comforting to know that, in some places, the honeybees seem to be doing just fine!

I worked with some good friends (and clients) of mine for the past few months, helping them find their dream house.  And find the house they did – a great old two story house in the Old Northeast neighborhood with original oak hardwood floors, a great fireplace, lots of fun little nooks and crannies, a third story attic high enough to stand up in (and it has a real staircase going up to it), and a full sized extra lot next door.  Negotiations, inspections and financing taken care of, we closed on the house exactly two weeks ago today.  But with all of the walk-throughs and visits, there was something that none of us had noticed – an undocumented, hidden feature.  Until last week, when my friends spotted the hives.  Three of them.  Active hives, with honeybees.  Lots of honeybees!

At first, they were concerned that the bees might pose a threat.  So they called a beekeeper who came out and inspected the hives.  The beekeeper told them that there is no cause for concern, and that the bees should be welcomed with (almost) open arms.  After all, we need bees to pollinate flowers and keep the cycle of life going, right?  And the fact that there are several beautiful citrus trees in their yard gives even more reason to celebrate the presence of these bees.

I was visiting them at their new home today, and I brought out my tripod and telephoto lens and set up for a picture.  It was truly a remarkable sight to me.  I’ve seen videos of hives before, and photos, and I’ve seen hives in controlled settings, like science museums, but I’ve really never seen them out in ‘the wild’.  Anyway, I wanted to share the photographs with you and assure you that, at least in St. Petersburg, there are some healthy, happy honeybees that appear to be doing just fine!  Please be sure to click on each photograph below so that you can see the full-sized image in a separate window – the smaller images just don’t do justice to the bees and their hive…