3,000 bees invade marine repair shop

A marine repair shop in Pasco County got quite the surprise this week when a swarm of bees decided to set up a new home there.

Derek Fingerly of Hudson Marine Service and Repair came to work Tuesday morning and found about 3,000 unexpected guests.

“You wake up and you're out there working and there's just a big swarm of bees," Fingerly said.

Overnight, the bees had made a home in the air conditioning unit of an RV the company is restoring.

Beekeeper Jefferey Johnston was called out Tuesday to remove the colony. He said it's unusual behavior for this time of year.

“Usually the month of December and January is our slowest time of the year," he said.

Johnston said cool weather typically keeps the bees dormant, but this winter, he’s averaging a swarm removal a day. Experts say the unusual warm weather could mean more swarms.

Johnston said he easily found the queen and started drawing in the rest of the small colony into a box. The bees were docile and only worried about where the queen was. Johnston didn’t even need a suit to remove them.

“They don't have any baby brood or any colony of honey that's built out in comb to protect, so they're all about protecting her," he said.

Johnston got most of the colony into the box and wrapped it in a blanket so he could take them to his rescue.

The removal lasted about an hour.

This story was originally published December 28, 2016 at 12:10 PM with the headline "3,000 bees invade marine repair shop."