Who You Gonna Call?

I don’t usually have time to do bee removals but the good folks that live in this home in Seguin seemed to really need help, plus I was desperate to find a replacement queen for one of my hives that recently became queenless.  Above is the hive entrance that the bees had created at the back of the house. When I removed the siding this is what I found:

Fortunately the bees were very gentle (i.e. no stings), and I was able to collect them and their brood and about five pounds of honey and put them in a regular bee box. I knew it would be a long shot to locate the queen, so I was thrilled when I spotted her among the thousands of bees that I had put in the box. I then took the bees to Elm Creek, where I united them and their queen with the queenless hive. I should know in a week if the queen is accepted by the old hive, but I am optimistic since this method of queen introduction is usually successful.