After finishing the honey harvesting in Hokkaido, all the bees returned safely to Kumamoto with the beekeeping department.
The total distance was approximately 2,400 km. It took a full three days (about 72 hours) to travel from Hokkaido to Kumamoto.After arriving in Kumamoto, all beekeeping members will carry out the "honey extraction" task.
This time, there are a total of 300 beehives that have returned.

Beekeeping members are carefully unloading each beehive from a large truck with a total load capacity of 20 to 30 tons.

Bees are sensitive to changes in their environment. To avoid causing them any stress, refrigerated trucks are used for transportation.

By keeping the temperature inside the truck cool, we prevent the temperature inside the beehive from rising too much.

The moment the truck door was opened, the buzzing sound of the bees could be heard.

After that, it showed a lively and vigorous appearance as it flew around energetically!

Seeing that figure, we also felt relieved.

The returned birdhouses will be installed in areas such as Mashiki, where the temperatures are not expected to be very high.

What is important here is the measures against hornets.
Although hornets are not fond of the cold, they remain active until the temperature drops in winter and attack honeybees.
Therefore, when setting up, a hornet trap should be installed in the beehive.To ensure that the bees can spend time in a comfortable environment even after returning, the beekeeping members go to inspect the hives every day.
During the winter, we will support them so they can conserve their energy for next year's honey collection!