If someone is stung
Get the sting out fast by scraping it with a fingernail or a card, wash the spot with soap and water, and cool it with a wrapped ice pack. Use an adrenaline autoinjector straight away if the person has one for anaphylaxis, then ring 000. Ring 000 as well for a swollen tongue or throat, noisy breathing, dizziness or collapse.
Three kinds of bee problem
| Swarm | Colony in the house | Abandoned hive | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you see | A clump of bees on a branch, fence or post | A steady stream in and out of one gap in a wall, eave or roof | An old hive box nobody looks after, still busy |
| Who to call | A registered beekeeper | A beekeeper if they can collect it; otherwise a pest business | A beekeeper first; a pest business if it can't be taken |
| How soon | Quickly, before it moves into a building | Soon, especially near doors or play areas | Before an officer directs it: then the clock starts |
Bees and Bendigo's rules
Your land, your bees
The City of Greater Bendigo says rats, mice, bees and wasps on private land must be controlled by the owner or occupier. It also says residents may not treat pests on council managed land.
Five days for an abandoned colony
Bendigo's Community Local Law says an unmanaged or abandoned bee colony must be removed or destroyed within five days of a direction from an authorised officer. If you've bought a place with an old hive in the back corner, deal with it before anyone has to ask.
Keeping it is an option, with paperwork
Anyone in Victoria who keeps one or more hives must register as a beekeeper. If you'd rather keep the bees than lose them, that's the rule to know.
Why a beekeeper usually comes first
Victoria's Department of Health tells pest businesses to refer bee complaints and enquiries to a beekeeper or the Victorian Apiarists Association. A beekeeper may be able to collect and rehome the bees, and a swarm hanging in the open is the easiest kind to take.
A pest business is the call when bees have built comb inside a wall or roof that a beekeeper can't reach, or when a colony sits right beside a doorway, a child's room or someone who reacts badly to stings. Our national bees page explains the difference in detail.
Questions for whoever comes
- Can these bees be collected, or do they need treating?
- Will the comb come out of the wall, or stay in the cavity?
- Will you close the entry afterwards so another swarm doesn't move in?
- If you treat them, what product will you use, and how long should we keep away?
Our take on bee removal in Bendigo
For a swarm or an old hive, we'd ring a registered beekeeper first and give them the chance to save the bees. For a colony inside the house, keep the family back and tap Bees with your postcode.
Want someone to look at it?
Tell us what you've seen and your postcode, and a local pest business that handles exactly that calls you to talk it through.
