Busy Day and Night

Our honeybees have been working so hard this year!  They've put out two swarms who have gone off into the world and are hopefully doing well.  Now that the goldenrod is in full bloom they are really going nuts bringing home pollen to convert to honey.  They pack it into little baskets on their hind legs and tote it into the tree.

I didn't even realize I had caught a bumblebee taking a look at all the activity until I biggified the photo.

For some reason, watching each bee march into the crevice with their yellow legs makes me think of Yosemite Sam stumping along with his big flaring chaps and six-guns.  ;-)



And after the bees have worked all day bringing in pollen they are busy all night too, taking turns standing on the 'doorstep' of the hive fanning their wings to move air and evaporate excess moisture from the new honey (and just cool the hive from a day of high summer heat) and bring it to the right consistency for preservation.  The flashlight didn't bother them but the buzzing from the tree could give someone the heebie-jeebies if they were leery of bees in general.  Be sure to turn up the sound to get the full effect. I'm seriously thinking of using the winter months to learn enough about keep bees that I'll be prepared next summer when a swarm decides to leave the tree.  This main group has survived the winter and is doing well now. If it survives this coming winter too it will certainly indicate they are a hardy line and if I could just put them into a "real" beehive..... Just what we need - more livestock and associated work.  Heh.