Packaging the bees

Getting a box of bees is an exciting -- and a bit scary -- event. Thousands of bees are clinging to the wire mesh sides of the box, emitting a low-level buzz that makes you glad they have been firmly secured.

If you have ever wondered how the bees got into the box, the folks at Brushy Mountain Bee Farm have put together a slide show on their visit to the Wilcox Apiaries in Georgia. The show takes the viewer through the entire process of packaging bees.

Wilcox operates 6,000 colonies of bees and has been in business for many years.

The photos in the slide show demonstrate they know exactly what they are doing in this fascinating process. The photo to the right shows one of the keepers putting the bees into a funnel that will get them into the box.