AN UNLUCKY Edinburgh cyclist returned to collect their bike – only to discover a massive swarm of bees had decided to claim it for themselves.
The cyclist left their bike chained up on the Scottish capital’s Lothian Road yesterday but returned to discover thousands of the pollinators were now calling it home.
Swarming the entirety of the bike’s seat, frame and handlebars, the bees acted as a fine deterrent for any would-be thieves but were less than convenient for the owner.
The colony appeared to have swarmed the bike in vain whilst in search for a new hive but were thankfully later removed and relocated by specialists.
Snaps show thousands of the insects having swarmed to the bike, creating a carpet of bees enveloping the main frame.
Whilst most of the critters have latched on to the bike, hundreds more can be seen taking flight and buzzing around the main bike and another beside it, which the bees have also started to claim.
Whilst the colony was said to be exhibiting normal bee-haviour, specialists were eventually contacted to rehome the bees with emergency local beekeepers arriving at the scene.
Colonies of bees often take up temporary residences while searching for a new hive with this swarm choosing to stop off on the unattended bicycle.
Beekeepers often move migrating swarms to dedicated hives to prevent them from nesting somewhere inconvenient.
The images of the bees – alongside a further snap showing a yellow-clad beekeeper tending to the migratory swarm – were shared to social media yesterday.
The caption read: “Bees are swarming on Lothian Road.”
The post received over 350 likes and more than 70 comments from social media users left amazed at the bizarre sight.
One user said: “Silly bees, bikes are for wasps.”
Another added: “That’s cool as f**k. There must be a queen in there that they’re swarming around. I love bees.”
A third replied: “On the plus side, your bike won’t be robbed.”
Another joked: “Wonder if they got charged ULEZ ? They do go some speed.”
