THREE beehives stocked with bees have been stolen from a site near Longis Bay.
The bees belonged to Henry Boughton-Leigh who passed away in October, and were being cared for by a farm worker. He described the theft as both sad and baffling.
Mark Atkinson had gone from Rose Farm, near the island's airport and where Mr Boughton-Leigh's wife Jo lives, to where the three hives were located on a dirt track adjacent to Frying Pan Lane, Longis.
Mr Atkinson explained that he visited the hives every fortnight to give the bees their winter two weekly feed supplement of sugar and water solution.
The skill and effort required to steal the hives meant it was unlikely to be a prank, he said, adding that the bee keeping community was baffled by the theft.
He described the hives as being around three feet high and two feet wide, and bulky enough to require a four wheel drive vehicle to transport along the rough track. He speculated that it would probably take two people to carry them away
'The thing that has me puzzled is that at this time of year the bees are in a dormant state and even if you moved a hive a bit you will have bees coming out, very dopey, which would probably sting you,' he said. 'Without someone knowing what they are doing taking the hives would be difficult. It's not the sort of thing anyone would do as a prank. 'They would have to wear protective clothing or wrap something round the whole hive to stop them getting out.'
He said the theft had upset the family as the bees were Mr Boughton-Leigh's pride and joy. He had moved to Rose Farm with his family in 1989 and also imported rare breeds of water fowl. It had been his ambition to have sheep on the land, which sadly, he never achieved.
Mr Atkinson said: 'One of the hives contained the last swarm that Henry successfully moved, in the summer, so they do have sentimental value. Mrs Boughton-Leigh makes honey from the bees and sells it in her clothing shop, Anchors. She is very upset indeed about the whole thing. This is not the sort of thing that happens in Alderney.'
PC Andy Telford said one of the hives had since been found close to the dirt track, too far to have been blown away and appealed to the public to look out to see if any of the other hives had been discarded.
He said he was still hunting for the other two hives.
Duty Alderney police officer Andy Telford urged people to look out for the hives in case they had been discarded. 'The person or persons responsible could have bee stings on them,' he added. 'I would urge anyone who knows where the beehives might be to get in touch on 824999 or anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.'
The Guernsey Bereavement Service has made three visits to Alderney over the past few months and would like to continue to help you. We are visiting the island again on
Tuesday, 23rd February 2024 and would invite anyone who feels they would like Bereavement Counselling to telephone the Bereavement Service Office on 257778 to make a time to meet one of our counsellors.
The Guernsey Bereavement Service has made three visits to Alderney over the past few months and would like to continue to help you. We are visiting the island again on
Tuesday, 23rd February 2024 and would invite anyone who feels they would like Bereavement Counselling to telephone the Bereavement Service Office on 257778 to make a time to meet one of our counsellors. 