“The queens are the only ones who have an antifreeze compound in their blood,” Mr. Ray said. “So normally, a surviving queen will have to start a colony from scratch in the spring. “They’re worrying me, because a child wouldn’t have a chance out there,” said Mr. Barron, whose smokehouse nest was still awaiting removal. Since the Cooperative Extension System issued the news release, Mr. Ray said, he has received dozens of photos of suspected super nests, but he needs to visit each site before confirming them. Mr. Ray told him that if there’s another mild winter, the hive could double or even triple in size.

Source: New York Times June 30, 2019 16:30 UTC