The Queen that almost got away...

I received a call that some roofers had found honeybees in the roof of a home in New Windsor. I was a little skeptical because usually it gets too hot in attic spaces for honeybees but sure enough the girls found a nice spot that was cooled by a stone chimney. You can see above the comb was built in the space between rafters with the outer most rafter turned flat giving them an approximate 6 x 6 x 8.5 inch triangle space. Getting all the comb section out was a real challenge with limited room to maneuver but the bees were as gentle as I've seen. Once the roofers got back to work and removed more decking we found the queen hiding with her cluster under the ridge beam. Every removal is a unique challenge and a great opportunity to help the honeybee and some great people.