
Despite the memo earlier this week assuring us that the bees behind building 2 had all moved on, bees continue to have a large presence in a tree right in the middle of the playground.
It turns out this isn’t really as dangerous as it looks. Apparently it’s common in the spring for a hive’s second queen bee to leave the hive with some percentage of worker bees and drones to look for a place to build a new hive. These bees will swarm, usually huddling around a tree branch or something similar, while scouts are sent out looking for an appropriate tree hollow or other protected area. During this time, the bees have no food or young to protect, so are very unlikely to exhibit any defensive behavior — i.e., they’re probably not going to sting anyone.
Nevertheless, having the swarm right in the middle of he playground is obviously not ideal. And since those bees are actually very valuable, it’s easy to find a beekeeper willing to come lure the swarm away. (In fact, it looks like that’s what’s happening down there right now.)