Science

Massive Bee Swarms Reportedly Strike New York City’s South Street Seaport

Massive Bee Swarms Reportedly Strike New York Citys South Street Seaport

Bees are almost entirely covering a red device near potted flowers(Photo: NY1)

On Memorial Day weekend, shopkeepers and restaurant-owners expect New York’s South Street Seaport to be buzzing with excitement– but they encountered quite a different type of buzz today.

According to ABC:

Around 11:30 a.m., one restaurant manager and his staff heard something unusual outside their door.

It was a swarm of bees buzzing around a hydrant on Fulton and Front streets, scaring away tourists and stinging business at William Miller’s restaurant.

“It‘s Memorial Day Weekend and normally we’re always busy,” said Miller. “And look at the next restaurant, they’re packed. And I’m so empty.”

Police cordoned off the busy section of the seaport, where thousands were strolling through.

Five hours after Miller called police, a brave beekeeper finally showed up – delayed because he was responding to several other calls Saturday.

Massive Bee Swarms Reportedly Strike New York Citys South Street Seaport

Another angle indicates that it was not a small number of bees (Photo: NY1)

ABC continues:

The past few weeks, swarms of bees have been appearing all across the city.

Last Sunday on the Upper West Side, a mother and her baby were trapped in their SUV for more than two hours because of bees.

Two weeks ago in the Bronx, 9,000 bees clustered in a tree.

And last month in Brooklyn, 5,000 bees made a hive on a building in Bedford-Stuyvesant.

Massive Bee Swarms Reportedly Strike New York Citys South Street Seaport

Earlier in May, the neighborhood of Astoria was reportedly swarmed, as well (Photo: Lisa Spina and Lissette Lejarde via New York Neighborhood News)

One woman interviewed by NY1 commented: “I’ve never actually seen a bee before here like Manhattan and stuff. I only see them in like mountain places.”

The New York Post speculates that an amateur rooftop beekeeper may be to blame– having lost control of his or her hobby.

 

Comments (78)

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  • freedom_gurl35
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 9:59pm

    I hope NYC doesn’t kill these swarms. They’re new hives and need places to establish themselves. We need the bees!

    Report Post » freedom_gurl35  
    • let us prey
      Posted on May 26, 2012 at 10:18pm

      Bloomberg will order them to be killed. NY sucks.

      Report Post » let us prey  
    • desirefirst
      Posted on May 26, 2012 at 10:39pm

      “let us prey” you‘ve got Bloom’s NYC all wrong, he will demand that every household hosts 50 bees

      Report Post »  
    • lukerw
      Posted on May 26, 2012 at 10:56pm

      @B-GIRL
      Not upon my Property!!!

      Report Post » lukerw  
    • TaraR42
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 6:01am

      If you get a swarm at your home or property do a search for bee keepers in your area the orginazation of bee keepers usually offer swarm removal at little or no cost ….

      Report Post »  
    • 4xeverything
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 7:36am

      What sort of bees are they? It actually does make a difference. If they are Honey bees then, they should be carefully removed and relocated. If they are yellow jackets/ground hornets then, they should be gotten rid of. Also, how do you control a hive of bees?

      Report Post » 4xeverything  
    • bikerr
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 8:11am

      @4xeverything-you tell them to “be hive” or else.

      Report Post »  
    • loriann12
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 9:21am

      I’m in Texas, and I’ve noticed more bees than last year. It’s great for my garden. Maybe the world won’t end afterall.

      Report Post »  
    • 4truth2all
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 11:11am

      Yo Biker;
      That’s good ! … so if they don’t … are you going to be-head them?

      Report Post »  
  • truthseer
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 9:52pm

    The new yourk times article never said “having lost control of his or her hobby” according to this blaze article. If youre going to hold up other people to their words then you shuldnt be INJECTING your own words. I hate NY Times too but The Blaze loses respect points when it starts embellishing to make things sound worse.

    The times actually said:

    “The humming mass of insects — likely an escaped hive from a rooftop bee-keeper somewhere nearby — enveloped the hydrant at the corner of Fulton and Front Streets around 11 a.m. and swarmed for hours before cops arrived“ and ”bee-keeping has become a hip, popular hobby among New Yorkers”

    How the blaze managed to quote something that doesnt exist should make everyone who reads the blaze mad.

    No mention of “losing control” in there. In fact I would have been surprised if the Times had said that as even professional beekers cannot always prevent a swarm in time or catch every swarm that leaves their hives. (Which is why I actaully went to read their article and didnt see any mention of and amateur losing control)

    Report Post »  
    • asybot12
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 3:10am

      I wonder if your got a bee up your bonnet or you are only “nit”picking.

      Report Post »  
    • piper60
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 7:45am

      “An escaped hive” clearly indicates the loss of control of one’s bees. Wake up.

      Report Post » piper60  
    • raderby
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 9:42am

      for a TRUTHSEER, reading comp is not part of it, huh? NY POST, not Times. A NYT article would have said that the bees were disenfranchised, or staging a union walkout, or were a sign that the Obama economy plans were working.

      Report Post » raderby  
    • EddardinWinter
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 9:45am

      Truth-
      The writer actually cites the New York Post. So your research on the NYT was misguided.

      Report Post » EddardinWinter  
    • EddardinWinter
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 10:04am

      Raderby-
      “Disenfranchised bees” that is spectacular. Here I was satisfied with smugly pointing out the wrong publication being cited. Very Nice!

      Report Post » EddardinWinter  
    • COFemale
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 12:42pm

      Okay lets compare statements:

      Rooftop bee-keeper – is a hobbist and if the bees are no longer on his rooftop then he/she lost control. Bee keepers generally live outside city limits.

      Then The Blaze statement isn’t a fabrication. It is another way to say the same thing.

      Not all stories have to written verbatim to another article unless you are makeing a direct quote.

      Report Post » COFemale  
    • COFemale
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 12:44pm

      In addition the sentence reads, THE NEW YORK POST speculates. What part of that do you not understand. The writer of The Blaze did not say this.

      Report Post » COFemale  
  • Flyingfish
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 9:48pm

    Yawn, as someone who has raised bees, nothing to get excited about. A swarm is harmless, though I must admit 20-30K bees even get’s my heart rate up.

    Report Post » Flyingfish  
  • TIME_2_END_THE_PAUL_CAMPAIGN_IN_12
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 9:32pm

    Hmmmmm…. Obama White House-flies, Bloomberg’s NYC Bees… anything biblical about this? Lol.

    I know that flies are supposedly connected to Satan, and the Yellow Jacket is sometimes called the Devil Bee… hmmmmm. Or could these be “Africanized” Killer Bees…??

    Report Post » TIME_2_END_THE_PAUL_CAMPAIGN_IN_12  
    • lukerw
      Posted on May 26, 2012 at 11:01pm

      Omen? The Bee has been the Symbol used by Popes! Forces of Opposition?

      Report Post » lukerw  
    • nzkiwi
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 3:09am

      Who says you can’t train bees…

      Report Post »  
    • TIME_2_END_THE_PAUL_CAMPAIGN_IN_12
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 11:56am

      LUKERW. After doing a little research I did find that bees mean different things to many, with both GOOD and BAD connotations attached.

      Report Post » TIME_2_END_THE_PAUL_CAMPAIGN_IN_12  
    • lukerw
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 1:40pm

      Unusual Timing… Unusual Location… if this were Ancient Egypt the Priests would be presenting the observation to Pharaoh… and, as a god, he would contact the other gods to reveal the meaning.

      Report Post » lukerw  
  • marybethelizabeth
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 9:26pm

    Printing local community crime blotters as national news is bad.

    What’s worse? UFO and Bigfoot stories.

    Now a new low has been set. A story about bees.

    When you see astory like this, theblaze editors Just Say No.

    Report Post » marybethelizabeth  
    • beckwill
      Posted on May 26, 2012 at 10:47pm

      Feel free leave The Blaze and visit other sites. We won’t complain.

      Report Post »  
    • Paul
      Posted on May 26, 2012 at 11:10pm

      “Now a new low has been set”

      Yes it has, they let you on here…

      Report Post » Paul  
    • asybot12
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 3:13am

      Thanks Paul!

      Report Post »  
  • epicwinofgod
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 9:08pm

    A sample to see, is what it seems to me.

    Report Post » epicwinofgod  
  • TJexcite
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 9:05pm

    How can one take about bees and not toss this ad in just for fun.

    http://youtu.be/QS541kDbXXM

    The Bees Know….

    Report Post » TJexcite  
  • Jude 4
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:58pm

    The little fellas are only doing what God set in order for them to do. Get those workers and queen in a hive, and you could collect a 5 gallon bucket of raw honey; one of the three ‘superfoods’ in the world, and still one of the best (possibly the best all around) burn applications. These navigation masters just stumbled into their calling as a result of random ‘who knows what’. They also were able to stumble across the recipe for making one of the most pleasent tasting foods in the world, from the blooms of all sorts of vegetation. Without these pollinators, 1/3 of the food production would vanish. The smallest of God’s creatures can confound the wise among men. If the whole world joined together, they wouldn’t be able to make a fly, unless they already had the existing, living, parts of a fly, which is not creation, but assembly.

    Report Post » Jude 4  
    • TheArbiter
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 10:11am

      It appears blaze users can spin any story in the news into something religious. Kind of like how the libs can spin any story into a human rights issue. You guys all march to the same beat while whistling different tunes.

      Report Post » TheArbiter  
  • chips1
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:56pm

    If you look at the third picture and use a magnifying glass, the bee just to the left of the statues ear, That’s John Belushi.

    Report Post »  
  • joeyjo
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:51pm

    I love bee swarms. Free bees!!

    Report Post » joeyjo  
  • The-Monk
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:41pm

    Sounds like someone has some Bee pheromones and is spraying on objects around the area.

    http://www.ehow.com/how_7555977_make-honey-bee-pheromones.html

    http://www.chm.bris.ac.uk/webprojects2001/loveridge/index-page5.html

    Report Post » The-Monk  
  • KidCharlemagne
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:31pm

    Another time-delayed side effect of the mild winter, perhaps?

    Report Post »  
  • kickagrandma
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:26pm

    The bees’ CREATOR IS on the move, folks. Don’t kill the bees. Pray and watch!

    Report Post »  
    • TheArbiter
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 10:20am

      I just know it’s hiding in there somewhere; can you tell me where in the bible it mentions the Prophecy of the Second Coming of the Bees? Why do we need to pray if it’s already in His plan? Is it like signing a holy guestbook with the Big Guy or what?

      Report Post » TheArbiter  
  • LeadNotFollow
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:26pm

    …
    Does Glenn Beck’s website still sell the T-Shirts with “The Bees Know” printed on them?

    Report Post »  
  • ValdostaMRA
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:20pm

    Glenn and Stu called them to rid NY of all the Liberal…THE BEES KNOW!!!!

    Report Post »  
  • qpwillie
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:18pm

    “Two weeks ago in the Bronx, 9,000 bees clustered in a tree.

    And last month in Brooklyn, 5,000 bees made a hive on a building in Bedford-Stuyvesant.”
    —————————————————————————————–

    I just want to know who’s counting them. I’ll bet they lose their place often.

    “Seven thousand, six hundred and thirty five – - Oh shoot, they moved!!!! One – two – three ……….”

    Report Post » qpwillie  
  • oriondma05
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:17pm

    The Bee’s know.

    Report Post » oriondma05  
  • nobull14
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:16pm

    This is like the third one I have heard about in the last couple weeks ? It seems very strange ,one was at baseball game and swarms the tv camera and another on a car and the people were trapped and now this one .

    Report Post »  
  • amerbur
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:10pm

    I thought there was some kind of bee die off, shortage or concern that radio frequencies may be confusing them. Guess not.

    Report Post »  
  • felix
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:07pm

    BUSHES fault !

    Report Post »  
  • Armyof One
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:07pm

    Perhaps the bee die-off has ended. With more and more swarms occurring, seems to me that more colony’s are forming, which is a wonderful thing. Most people have no idea how terrible the US agricultural economy would suffer without bees.

    Report Post » Armyof One  
  • this1can
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:01pm

    maybe he/she lost control on purpose that’s one way to get rid of the ows crowd sting em till they leave. Love/Pray

    Report Post »  
  • ChiefGeorge
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 7:58pm

    Leave them alone! We need everyone of them.

    Report Post » ChiefGeorge  
  • ALL4FREEDOM
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 7:58pm

    I have an idea: can the beekeepers manage to get the bees to swarm around OWS? They could try pheremone lures…

    Report Post »  
    • Dr Vel
      Posted on May 26, 2012 at 8:31pm

      Unlike liberals and politicians bees have more class and a better sense of judgement than that.

      Report Post »  
    • Rohawk
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 4:04pm

      Wouldn’t work. You get more bees with honey than vinegar and I think OWs probably smells more like the latter.

      Report Post »  
    • texrubarts
      Posted on May 27, 2012 at 4:55pm

      These bees are “worker” bees & the OWS are lazy farts – bees & OWS do not run in the same circles!! The bees could run OWS out of town!!! LOL-LOL…

      Report Post » texrubarts  
  • Inlandmar2
    Posted on May 26, 2012 at 7:49pm

    I guess NYC will have a BEEZY holiday weekend.

    Report Post » Inlandmar2  
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