A beehive was discovered inside a downed tree in Riverview Park Friday and by Saturday about 10,000 bees had been rescued.
Thousands of bees were saved this weekend from a downed cottonwood in Riverview Park.
The tree fell near the banks of the Carson River and the bee hive inside the trunk was discovered by at least one passerby, Monique Giron, who contacted Carson City Parks, Recreation and Open Space on Friday. The department called the Great Basin Beekeepers of Nevada, and one of its members, Cara Strasser, went to help.
“Parks and Rec were great, they let me drive my car in. There is a lot of gear,” said Strasser.
Strasser removed the comb, but could not get all the bees so she left hoping the bees would cluster, when it easier to capture them. She returned on Saturday, found the bees had gathered together, and tried to collect them in a nuc box for bees. Eventually, she had to use a special vacuum.
“That’s the last option when you have no other options,” said Strasser.
Strasser said she rounded up about three pounds of bees, roughly 10,000 bees.
The Carson City beekeeper is now trying to set them up in a new hive. The bees have tried to leave, which may mean the queen bee has died, so Strasser has blocked them in and is feeding them sugar water.
“They start making wax,” she said. “Makes them feel at home.”
She’s also put in larvae and eggs to try for a new queen. The entire experiment will take a few weeks to see if a new queen has been established and accepted.
“We do our best to help them out, to give them a new home,” said Strasser.
-->Thousands of bees were saved this weekend from a downed cottonwood in Riverview Park.
The tree fell near the banks of the Carson River and the bee hive inside the trunk was discovered by at least one passerby, Monique Giron, who contacted Carson City Parks, Recreation and Open Space on Friday. The department called the Great Basin Beekeepers of Nevada, and one of its members, Cara Strasser, went to help.
“Parks and Rec were great, they let me drive my car in. There is a lot of gear,” said Strasser.
Strasser removed the comb, but could not get all the bees so she left hoping the bees would cluster, when it easier to capture them. She returned on Saturday, found the bees had gathered together, and tried to collect them in a nuc box for bees. Eventually, she had to use a special vacuum.
“That’s the last option when you have no other options,” said Strasser.
Strasser said she rounded up about three pounds of bees, roughly 10,000 bees.
The Carson City beekeeper is now trying to set them up in a new hive. The bees have tried to leave, which may mean the queen bee has died, so Strasser has blocked them in and is feeding them sugar water.
“They start making wax,” she said. “Makes them feel at home.”
She’s also put in larvae and eggs to try for a new queen. The entire experiment will take a few weeks to see if a new queen has been established and accepted.
“We do our best to help them out, to give them a new home,” said Strasser.