“If honey bees become extinct, human society will follow in four years.” — Albert Einstein On Friday, April 22, around 3 p.m., I was saddened to see that an entire colony of honey bees was about to be exterminated. The colony was temporarily residing on a sign pointing to underground parking on Fay Avenue in La Jolla. According to an exterminator from Lloyd Pest Control, his company was called to exterminate the bees by an employee of Merrill Lynch, an occupant of the building. Knowing that honey bee populations have been declining, this was very upsetting to me. I had asked the exterminator if he could relocate the bees instead and he stated that his company didn’t do that. The exterminator expressed that he was not happy with his task this day either but lamented that he had no choice, it was his job. The bees that were to be killed were likely looking for a new home. Bees swarm seasonally; it is a chance for the population to grow. Although caution and maintaining distance are good ideas, swarming bees are said to be generally unlikely to sting since they aren’t protecting a hive. We need bees. Bees pollinate and fertilize plants — and some sources say they are responsible for up to one third of the food we eat. Unfortunately, they have been dying off in vast numbers for many years, in many countries and no one is certain why. The phenomenon is being called Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). Perhaps unknown to readers and the person on Fay Avenue who called for the extermination — unwanted bees can be relocated rather than exterminated. There are several services that will remove hives and their live bees when possible. For example: Pro Pacific at (619) 229-2023 relocates many and has same-day service (not open Sundays). The San Diego Bee Removal Guys at (619) 201-4410 also have same-day service and they will come out on a Sunday. For the latter, you may get an answering service when you call, but they say they’ll respond within five to 10 minutes. It is tragic that entire colonies are wiped out when there are people who would like to relocate and/or keep the bees. We need to protect and save the bees we have left. Our own future depends on it.