Bee-ligerent invasion halts cricket match

A cricket match came to an abrupt halt last week when a swarm of bees descended on Cork County Cricket Club.

The Munster Reds and the Northern Knights were playing an inter-provincial match at the Mardyke ground when 20,000 pollinators sent players and spectators scrambling to avoid the invasion.

Luckily, local beekeeper Mauro Dias of Buzz of Nature arrived swiftly and managed to get the swarm under control and back in a box.

“When I arrived there and saw the number of people at the grounds, I thought ‘this could be fun,’” he told the Cork Independent.

“I believe there were around 20,000 bees. They landed on a white fence between the clubhouse and the pitch itself and gathered around the queen,” he said.

Mauro explained that the reason it happened was that the bees had swarmed. Swarming is the process by which honeybee colonies reproduce to form new colonies. When a honeybee colony outgrows its home the bees get permission to make a new queen. The old queen will leave the hive with half the bees, looking for a new home.

“The swarm lands somewhere just to rest, or because they haven’t got a new home yet,” Mauro explained.

Although swarming bees aren’t aggressive, Mauro advises calling in a professional to look after the situation. “When the bees go into a swarm mode, they don’t really have a house to defend, so they are not really aggressive, and they don’t want to sting you. But I wouldn’t recommend people start messing around with them,” he added.

Mauro, who has 35 hives of his own, opted for using his hands rather than equipment to gather the bees back into the box during the removal process. “I don’t need any equipment if it’s a swarm, it would be stressful to the bees. I just helped them with my hands, but they are docile in a situation like that. However, I know it’s not for everyone!” he said.

Once Mauro had safely removed the pollinators, the game resumed, and the bees are currently residing at their new home in Glounthane.

Mauro, who has been a beekeeper for a decade, explains that swarms typically occur based on weather conditions. Normally, swarms occur more frequently in July or August, but due to a few weeks of good summer weather, they are happening earlier this year.

Another issue that people may have with honeybees at this time of year is finding a colony on their property. “Call a beekeeper if you find that bees have created a colony somewhere in your home,” he said.

“A chimney, cavity of a wall, or the space between the rafters under your roof tiles can attract them. They will consider that space their beehive, so they could be a bit aggressive. A beekeeper will go and assess the situation for you,” he said.

“Even if those bees die new bees may come along in the future because there will be a honeycomb and an old comb, they can smell the honey and the old comb. New bees will go into old hives, it happens a lot,” he added.