Decades-old colony of 40,000 bees removed from inside walls of family’s home

WESTBROOK, Maine (WMTW) - A farmhouse in Maine is getting a "buzzworthy" renovation.

It's because of what had to be taken out of the house before the work could even get started.

A hive that housed over 40,000 bees had been inside the walls of an old farmhouse in Westbrook for decades.

The family, who said the bees could have been in the walls for up to 80 years, wanted to safely relocate the colony instead of killing the insects.

So, the family called in a bee expert to move them from the walls to a hive outside of the building.

In the meantime, they plan to maintain the hive.

The family's hope is that the colony can survive the winter so it can be relocated somewhere else on the farm.

The family has a long relationship with the bees and they felt strongly about saving them.

The bee expert said the bees have medicinal value and they pollinate their crops.