Friday, July 30, 2010

honey bee in the cold of San Francisco

I am troubled tonight at this early evening hour where it is 56 degrees F and there is a honey bee outside my kitchen window, lost and lonely. I see pollen on one of its legs. It is impossible to find its way back to the hive tonight. Do I take it in? I run the risk of getting stung if I do. Its antennas were moving when I first spotted it, but now I see the antennas are cast down and its nose is right against the wood. The antennas went from fluttering to a very light, microscopic twitch. I think it could either be dead or just sleeping. Is there any way to tell the difference between a bee sleeping or having died and not flipped onto its back? Tapping on the window does so little for it. Here is a photo of it.










I opened the window and it started moving so I know it is still alive, but I don't dare let it in and it can sting me or my cat.
UPDATE: The bee was still sleeping there at 8:30AM, but once the sun burned through the clouds, the little fella must have warmed up enough to fly back to its hive. It was nice seeing you, bee.

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