Bee business

One of the things I love about work for local government is finding out weird stuff. Did you know that bees can be an issue in the urban area because bees defecate 25 to 75 metres from their hive, following take off? They follow the same flight path each time so that can have impacts on neighbours’ washing and their houses, because the faeces is sticky, yellow and hard to clean off.

It is particularly bad after a sustained period of rainy weather, because bees stay inside the hive during that time and won't defecate in their own nests. They cross their legs and hold on until the weather improves!
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There are now businesses providing hives to urban households, so the number of people with beehives in town is increasing. This is a good thing, because bees are so important for pollination, but the side effects need managing. The main way to do this is to move the hive, so that the bees' flight path changes.