Bee whisperer shakes tree free of massive swarm

A massive ball of buzzerstook flightThursday as a Winnipeg bee whisperer did his best to capture and remove the frenzied gathering of insects from a tree.

"It's going to be a big year for swarms," said RayGiguere,of Giguere Honey Farm in Winnipeg. The swarm he was called to deal with Thursday, he said, was "a big one for this time of year but it's going tobe the first of many, I'm sure."

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The province called Giguereand asked him to relocate the swarm, which came together in thetree of a backyard off Creek Bend Road in south St. Vital.

Working in shorts and a T-shirt without protective gear Giguere placed a box full of honeycombon the ground nearby to draw the bees away as he mounted the tailgate of his truck, grabbed a branch below the insects and shook the tree.

After all was said and done, he managed to get the majority of the bees off the tree. He plans to revisit the site in the eveningto remove the rest.

Gigueresaid bee colonies are common in the area, as the neighbourhood is right near the outskirts of the city.

He anticipates similar complaints could be on the rise if more bee enthusiasts decide to start their own backyard colonies.

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"There's more urban beekeepers now; that's going to factor in eventually in the future if they pass that law," he said. "We'll be hopping for sure."