With property abuzz, family opts to save 150,000 honey bees

Move to save about 150,000 honey bees

SAN ANTONIO – A local homeowner is opting for a rescue instead of "exterminating" a back house on their property.

Homeowners Roland Quintanilla and Cristina Besosa knew they had a bee problem in their back house, but they didn't realize how bad it was until they called for help.

"They really kept to themselves for a while, now that they've been coming out with the heat and everything, It's just a safety concern," Quintanilla said. "We really don't want to injure them or harm them."

The city of San Antonio asked the American Honey Bee Protection Agency to not only remove the bees, but also to move them.

"We're going to get as many of the bees as possible and then transport them off," Walter Schumacher said, who calls himself a "bee czar" with the American Honey Bee Protection Agency. "And, over the next three days, the bees that remain, we will vacuum them up and add them to the beehives that we took away."

Schumacher and his rescue staff found about 75,000 in a massive hive upstairs and about another 75,000 in a hive downstairs back house.

While the process looks dangerous, Schumacher said he doesn't really get stung.

"I go in and I've learned a little bit of their conversation, their language," Schumacher said.

After crews remove the bees from the home, Schumacher said they will keep them for about 14 days, work with them until they get better and then, they'll take them to SeaWorld.

"We are bringing wild bees from the San Antonio area to SeaWorld, to establish an apiary there," said Schumacher. "We're going to produce honey for the Sea World people."

"If we didn't' have a need to remove them to repair the house, as far as the roof, we probably would have just left them alone," Besosa said. "So, the least that we could do is relocate them to a good place, versus killing them altogether."


About the Author:

Stephanie Serna is a weekday anchor on Good Morning San Antonio and GMSA at 9 a.m. She joined the KSAT 12 News team in November 2009 as a general assignments reporter.