East Vancouver community garden stung by bee thief - Action News
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British Columbia

East Vancouver community garden stung by bee thief

Volunteers at Pandora Park in East Vancouver had just set up a new hive to start the season when they were shocked to discover somebody had stolen it.

Volunteers at Pandora Park had just set up a new hive to start the season

Volunteer beekeeper McGuire Kaminsky holds a frame crawling with the new bees brought in to replace the ones that were stolen from Pandora Park. (Rafferty Baker/CBC)

Members of the community garden at Pandora Park in East Vancouver were shocked to discover their brand new bee hive was stolen a little more than a week ago.

"They still can't believe it. It's upsetting," said volunteer beekeeper McGuire Kaminskyon Monday. "It's quite rare to have a hive disappear in the city."

The community garden has had bees for the past seven years, and had just brought in a new nucleus colony, or "nuc" a queen and workers to set up a hive but it disappeared within 24 hours.

Kaminskysaid there wasn't much evidence to explain what had happened, save for a chair left against the low fence and a lack of mess around the crime scene.

McGuire Kaminsky checks on a new hive brought into Pandora Park in East Vancouver after a thief made off with the previous hive. (Rafferty Baker/CBC)

"A clean grab, we called it ... A vandal would have done something different, so it just seems like someone who may have had experience with bees. I'm not saying it's another beekeeper, it's just someone who has some bee savvy," she said.

Kaminskysaid suspicion abounds in the tight community of gardeners, and the thief may have even been waiting for the new bees to arrive.

They made off with the hive under the cover of darkness, when most of the bees would have been safely tucked inside.

"There was no honey;there was just bees. ... There's a lot of ideas that have been shared throughout the community garden," Kaminsky said.

McGuire Kaminsky's new bees are settling in after a thief stole the Pandora Park community garden's new hive a little more than a week ago. (Rafferty Baker/CBC)

Kaminskysaid honey from last year's hive brought in about $400 that the community put back into the garden.

Now, the group is raising funds to cover the loss. They've already sourced a new nuc, and the bees are settling in at the park. Kaminskysaid more money is needed to replace the stolen equipment andpay for security upgrades to the bee enclosure to keep humans out.

Kaminskysaid she reported the theft to Vancouver police, but doesn't have much hope they'll recover the stolen hive.


Follow Rafferty Baker on Twitter: @raffertybaker