How to Catch a Honey Bee

Netting the Honey Bee

• 1

  Use an ice-pick to punch five to six holes in the container's lid if you plan to keep the bee in the jar for any length of time.

• 2

  Go to a place where honey bees feed such as a garden or lawn where clover grows. When you see a bee, approach it with slow movements so as not to frighten it away. Position yourself within arm's reach of the insect.

• 3

  Grasp the handle of your net. Hold the net as you would a tennis racket, with the ring perpendicular to the ground. Slowly raise the net so that the bee is aligned to the center of the net, with the center of the net no further away from the bee than the length of your arm.

• 4

  Wait a few seconds until the bee has alighted upon the flower. Swing your net as a tennis player swings his racket, capturing the bee inside the net. Immediately twist the net with a quick circular motion so that the narrow end of the net folds over the rest of the net. This motion will prevent the bee from escaping.

• 5

  If the bee is close to the ground, use the "drop technique." Hold the net's hoop parallel to the ground with the bee centered underneath. At the same time, hold the tip of the net up with your hand. Drop the net over the bee. Its natural instinct will be to fly up, thus entering the top of the net.

• 6

  Choke off the tip of the net containing the bee with your hand or a string until you transfer it to a container.

• 7

  Transfer the bee from the net to the jar or container by slowly sliding it up inside the net. Hold the net over the container's opening and ease the container and bee toward each other until the bee is inside the jar. Slowly slide the lid onto the container.