Are you bee-ing served?

JOHN BISSET/Timaru Herald

HIVE OF ACTIVITY: Robert Davidson removes bees that took up residence in town.

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They say shoppers can get prickly at this time of year, but the swarm in town yesterday were quite an exception.

Apiarist Robert Davidson got a panicked call from a Stafford St shop owner yesterday afternoon, asking him to come and retrieve a swarm of 500 bees which were scaring Christmas shoppers at the top end of the main street.

"Somebody with a flat deck truck with some bees on the back had parked on Stafford St, right in the heart of Stafford St, and the bees were leaking out all over the place, and then the owner just drove off," Mr Davidson said.

"As a beekeeper I would not park anywhere near the main street.

One of the shops called me to help," Mr Davidson said.

He coaxed the bees into a bag, and took them home to a new hive.

"They could smell the other bees on the bag so they were happy going into it.

"I have picked up a lot of swarms around town over the years, but never on the main street."

- © Fairfax NZ News