Bolton swarm season with bees and wasps being spotted

A swarm of bees was spotted in Tonge Moor, on the side of the Best-One convenience store on Ainsworth Lane.

Zafar Roshan, aged 43, was working in the shop when the bees appeared.

He said: “It happened on Wednesday evening and on Thursday morning it just got worse.

“I didn’t know who to ring and where to get help, but the people next door helped me find someone.”

He stressed his concern about the welfare of people in the area with the vast influx of bees.

A photo of the bee swarm on Best-One, taken by beekeeper Tom Heywood

He said: “It’s right next to a school, that was my main concern.

“I was scared, I’d never seen anything like it in my life.”

On Thursday, Zafar rang beekeeper Tom Heywood, who came down to the shop and cleared most of the bees out – although it is difficult to clear all of them.

By Friday morning there were still a considerable number of bees still on the wall, but it was hugely diminished from the previous day.

Zafar said: “What he said is he can’t get rid of them all, but the bees will go eventually.”

Tom is a beekeeper for Bee Local in Bolton, who produce wildflower honey, keep bees and help people out with swarms, among other duties.

Tom spoke about what greeted him when he arrived at the shop.

He said: “There were 40,000 bees there. They were very docile, I assume they came out of a domesticated hive rather than being wild.

“Whether the bees are wild or domestic they can have different traits, some might be more placid for example.”

Another recent bee swarm Tom has had to deal with

He added: “We ushered the majority of them into a hive in a box, provided the queen is in the box a lot will follow.

“They’ll actually walk into the hive rather than fly, they call it a march.”

After the bees are captured, they are then quarantined away from other bees so they can be treated for diseases.

Tom stressed that bees don’t need to be a cause for concern.

He said: “People are scared of what they don’t know. When bees leave the hive, they take nectar with them for energy and because they take all that nectar with them, they’re quite placid and full, and lazy.”

He did highlight how if a swarm have been around for a while, there should be more concern.

He added: “But a couple of days later, they’ll probably be a little more miffed, a bit hungry, a bit cold cause they’ve been away from the hive.”

Tracey Ditchfield, from Halliwell, has also had swarm problems recently, although with the angry cousins of bees, wasps.

She unfortunately had a swarm form at her house and had to deal with it rapidly.

She said: “My son rang me, he was going in the shower and three wasps came in.

“The pest control man said I had a swarm, the queen had been in there. A lot left with her and the ones left are considered lost.”

Tracey said she had been very frightened by the appearance of the swarm.

She said: “I was frightened to death, I am allergic when they sting.

“I had to get me, my son and my dog out of there.”

The swarm season for bees typically runs from May to the end of July.

If you have an issue with a bee swarm, contact the British Beekeepers Association and if you have a wasp problem then call the council's pest control department.