Pittsfield Township beekeeper admits her mistakes led to swarm stinging her

Honey bees

Photo courtesy of Maggie Smith

Pucillo's first mistake was checking on the status of her queen around 7 p.m., when the majority of the bees were returning to the hive. Second, she says she didn’t wear her complete bee suit, opting for a pair of low-cut shoes instead of the leather boots that accompany the suit. 

She expected it to be a quick inspection, but her presence agitated the hive.

Pucillo, who has two hives in her backyard, wanted to make sure of the queen's position in the hive. The queen likes to move toward higher positions, but a beekeeper wants the queen to remain near the bottom, where she is protected underneath rows of honey to lay eggs.

The bees became defensive with Pucillo's intrusion and swarmed her, forcing her husband, Philip, to call the Pittsfield Township Fire Department for assistance.

“They weren’t aggressive,” she said today. “It was my fault. I bothered them. Lesson learned.”

Firefighters say Pucillo was “stung approximately 50 times on her feet and legs.” She was also stung across her body as some bees found their way through her bee suit. 

Even her husband, who tried to assist her, was stung several times.

“I saw her walking toward me in this weird fashion, and I could see a cloud of black over her,” Philip Pucillo said. “I said, ‘Hon, are you OK?’ and I could tell in her voice that she was frightened.”

Her husband grabbed a hose to spray water at the swarm. When bees headed for him, he took shelter indoors and called firefighters.

By the time firefighters arrived, Pucillo thought she was in the clear - but they pointed out the large cloud looming overhead. According to their report, it took 750 gallons of water to disperse the bees.

Pucillo has been beekeeping for three years under the tutelage of a friend who has 10 years experience.

A beekeeper inspects his bee hives.

File photo

Her story stunned local beekeepers Lisa Bashert and Roger Sutherland, president of the Southeastern Michigan Beekeepers Association. Sutherland said the state doesn't have requirements or licensing to become a beekeeper, but he highly recommends taking a class like the one he offers through SEMBA.

“Bees are very gentle unless you rile them up,” Sutherland said.

Bashert, who has been beekeeping since 2005, also teaches classes across Ypsilanti. She maintains five hives at three Ypsilanti locations - the Ypsilanti Food Co-op, The Farm at St. Joseph Hospital and the Growing Hope Center.

Bashert was instrumental in Ypsilanti approving an ordinance allowing two hives on a property. Pittsfield Township allows three hives per property, Antoinette Pucillo said.

“I’ve never seen anything like that happen,” Bashert said. “Honey bees eat nectar and pollen. They are focused on flowers. They are not aggressive.

“They can be defensive when the hive is attacked in some way. I’ve been beekeeping for five years and in and out of a lot of hives and never see bees do something remotely like that.”

Pucillo’s interest in beekeeping began as a way to help nature.

A phenomenon known as colony collapse disorder has biologists puzzled as to why entire hives of bees are disappearing around the world. Fewer bees means agricultural crops have a harder time pollinating.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture says bee pollination is responsible for $15 billion in added crop value. The problem is so dire in China workers pollinate crops by hand.

Pucillo's first year as a beekeeper was a very successful one, producing eight gallons of honey. Last year, her bees’ honey production was down due to poor weather.

But this year, she expects another big honey output.

“It’s a wonderful hobby,” she said.

Brian Vernellis is a reporter for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at 734-623-4617 or brianvernellis@annarbor.com.