The Bees of Paris

Bees are great.

They pollinate plants, providing us with food. They make honey.

I don't know a lot about bees. I have heard that bees have been dying off in great numbers both in the US and in France. The scientists don't know why. It is a tragedy because if there aren't enough bees, our food sources will dry up or become much more expensive. So, we're relying on the bees.

Scientists don't know if the bees are dying because of pesticides or stress or something even more mysterious. I hope that they figure it out soon.



Today, during my morning jog in the Luxembourg Gardens, I smelled smoke. Looking around, I saw the scene shown above. Crazy people in space suits? No, beekeepers. This is where the beehives are kept in the gardens. In french, they're called "ruches".

I stopped to watch. I still don't know what these people were doing but I stopped to talk to a woman who said that they were putting the bees back outside after the winter. She said that bees can't live in temperatures below 50 F.

They had the whole area roped off, I"m sure to keep people from being stung.

In the fall, they have a sale of the Luxemboug honey. People line up outside with their containers ready. They can buy many different varieties of honey and it is a very popular event.

So, it looks like these bees are still healthy.