Frequently Asked Questions About Bee Removals

Like most Californians, bees are solar-powered and do their best work on warm, sunny days. They shelter in the cold and wet, as their wings are easily damaged by hail and heavy rain. They also cannot work during extreme heat. On Goldilocks days (not too hot, not too cold), when there is a plentiful supply of flowers, they double their efforts to gain as much nectar as possible to create honeycombs that will sustain them during cloudy days and the plant’s reproduction cycles (non-flowering times). They generally swarm in Spring when a hive is at its capacity with new drones and a Queen decides to form a new colony. 

Bees generally only sting in defense or when surprised, so the best way to avoid being stung is to move gently around them and try not to disturb them in their homes.

Avoid wearing floral prints or perfume, fragrant body spray, or suntan lotions while working in the garden, as they may mistake you for a flower.

I understand bee behavior and wear the right safety equipment when removing them from your property. I also work and speak in a way that the bees feel comfortable and trust me not to harm them. Never trust a beekeeper who behaves aggressively around a hive or wears a heavily scented deodorant!

No two callouts are the same. Some swarms are newly arrived and easily rehomed, while others may have been there awhile and created a hive spanning several feet inside a wall, roof, or underfloor. I offer no-obligation quotes upon inspection and free advice on how to avoid re-infestation. All costs are presented upfront with no hidden charges, and 24/7 emergency assistance is available if someone in your home has a life-threatening allergy to stings. Click here to contact us to get a free quote.

I perform live rescues and do not use a vacuum to collect bees because this method can damage their wings and leave them unable to fly. Bees are taken to carefully vetted beekeepers who ensure they live happy, harm-free lives pollinating crops. Wasps are dispensed with using non-chemical methods because they cannot be rehomed. They are considered a threat to native bees and are not pollinators.

Please don’t. We need the bees to survive, after all they pollinate 80% of our crops. It is illegal in the state of California to exterminate bees which is why Terminix and Orkin (leading extermination companies) refuse to work with bees entirely.

Native and European bees are protected from extermination. It will also soon be illegal to use bee-killing pesticides in California. Give me a call instead, and I will safely rehome hives and swarms for you. If finance is an issue, we can sort out a payment arrangement for you. Bees are vital to our economy, environment, and the food we eat. Save the bees, save ourselves.