With spring having well and truly sprung, the bees are out in force, and one Launceston resident is taking one swarm in particular under his own wing.
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Amateur apiarist Richard Forrest, who has been ethically transferring problem swarms into managed hives for several years, recently heard about a swarm sighting in City Park and set to work.
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"You get everything set up and you shake the bees into the box, which is what I did, then a bit of cardboard on top. Then you go back at nighttime and pick them up," he said.
"Then, when it's nice and quiet, move them and don't touch them, just let them get all settled down. And when they're all settled down you pick up the frames and move them into one box and Bob's your uncle. There's not much to it really."
Mr Forrest builds the hive boxes himself, complete with a jam-jar feeding bottle filled with sugar solution.
After several unsuccessful attempts at moving swarms, the City Park bees appear to have taken a liking to their new home, where they've remained for the last ten days.
CSIRO bee researcher Dr John Roberts said while Tasmania's bees have been sheltered from many of the diseases and pests impacting the species around the world, deforestation has been reducing safe habitats for them to set up hives.
"For the managed bee population, it's in their nature to swarm and it's important to get them back a box and ready for use in pollination. Having enough places for bees and keeping them well-fed is important," he said.
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To those who would be worried about having a beehive in their back garden, Mr Forrest knows his bees - which he's identified as Italian honey bees - aren't aggressive at all.
"People can get a bit skittish, but it's important we get used to them, then we won't want to kill them. We need them for pollination, and if we can relate to animals, I think we're better people," he said.
Mr Forrest hopes to begin harvesting honey from the bees next season.
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