Local beekeepers rescue and rehome honey bees

A bee’s work is never done. 

The Guam Honeybee Rescue Program is staying as busy as a bee rescuing and rehoming these pollinators.

With the sounds of buzzing around, Dennis Larson can’t escape the buzz. The bees stick to him like honey.

“Now think about it. 45 days, their entire life cycle, these bees know nothing but me, my voice, my mannerisms, and my checking in on them all the time,” said Larson. 

Larson alongside Guam Beekeepers Association President Paul Packbier run the Guam Honeybee Rescue Program. 

Their job is to save the bees, Larson adds, “You don’t want to mess with honeybee colonies. It is against the law. They are protected species now.”

Then let them be at the apiary. After all, they’re busy bees and a bee's work is never done.

“Now here you can see the bees are already starting to build up the wax on these foundations that we give them,” Larson added. 

Some are re-homed with budding beekeepers, for the most part locally. 

“This box specifically is due to be shipped to another farm at the end of this week,” he said.  

Others made a beeline to the Northern Marianas on a historic flight Tuesday.  

“We’re in Tinian today working with the Tinian Farm people. We just delivered four colonies of bees. A plane dropped them off. Entomologist Chris Rosario is working with these people to get them to be beekeepers here in Tinian so they can pollinate all of these farms,” he said. 

Guam honeybees are disease free. 

That's not something most places can buzz about. 

“Australia is already asking. Alaska, although they have a weird program and they have to die each year, they’re asking if they can get Guam bees,” said Packbier. 

But there’s still this threat to bee-ware. 

“That's our biggest menace these days, the greater banded hornet,” Packbier added. 

Efforts are underway to eradicate their nests.

“Actually yesterday, a group of beekeepers were at Jeff’s Pirate’s Cove which had been under attack by greater banded hornets. They caught some and put transducers on one and they’re trying to find the nest,” Packbier said. 

Meantime, KUAM also put to work at the bee farm.