8,000 Bees Go Sightseeing on the Upper East Side

An urban bee-wrangler says a swarm of at least 8,000 honeybees will be getting a new home after causing a buzz of excitement on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. Onlookers applauded as the New York Police Department’s beekeeper, Officer Anthony Planakis, corralled the huge swarm yesterday on Lexington Avenue. The bees had built a giant hive in a tree. When the queen went sightseeing, the entire swarm followed.

Onlooker Doug Becker described “a 3 foot column of bees.”

The tour group proceeded half a block before buzzing back to the hive.

Planakis said the bees would be taken “to a farm in Connecticut to pollinate.”

Last week, bee enthusiasts gathered on the steps of City Hall to push a bill that would legalize beekeeping in New York City.{NewYorkNow/Matzav.com Newscenter}