HAMPDEN – Around 2.5 millions bees arrived in town, and on Thursday were handed out to area beekeepers.
The Maine bees spend their winters down south but return in the spring, by truck.
“These are bees which have a queen bee in them and they’ve been shaken out of hives that are big and healthy down in Florida right now, so that we can start up hives here in Maine,” said Peter Cowin, of Hampden, known locally as The Bee Whisperer.
Cowin, who started with his first beehive at age 11, also has around 150 colonies of his own bees. He said with the recent cold weather, the bees may need to be fed pollen until they can get outside.
Around 80 beekeepers picked up bees on Thursday. Another shipment of bees is scheduled to arrive in May.
