Construction workers got a big surprise while fixing Hwy. 154 bridge — 40,000 live bees
It’s no surprise to hear a lot of noise during construction, but Caltrans workers discovered a distinct sort of buzz during recent work on a bridge in Santa Barbara — that of roughly 40,000 live bees that had taken up residence nearby.
According to a tweet by Caltrans District 5 on Tuesday, an 8-foot hive was discovered hidden in a wooden sign post near the bridge, apparently home to thousands of the buzzing pollinators.
District 5 spokesman Jim Shivers told The Tribune the hive was discovered around April 15.
Photos shared on Twitter by Caltrans show a cavity in a large wooden post where the insects took up residence, filled with honeycomb and thousands of the buzzing bees.
According to Caltrans, the bees “were safely removed to a commercial hive aided by beekeepers before being released to agricultural areas to pollinate crops.”
This story was originally published April 26, 2022 at 5:52 PM with the headline "Construction workers got a big surprise while fixing Hwy. 154 bridge — 40,000 live bees."
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