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Un-bee-lievable! Beekeeper Builds Fully Functioning Lego Hive

A beekeeper from Ireland built a fully functioning hive using Lego, and the colorful creation is now home to 30,000 bees.

Footage taken by Ruairi O Leochain, a school teacher and wildlife activist from Athlone, Co Westmeath, on May 14 shows his impressive man-made beehive in action.

O Leochain, who runs Athlone’s Wildlife Apiaries, told the Westmeath Independent that he started to make the Lego hive just for fun.

“I had the idea before COVID-19, so when that happened I thought I would order a load of Lego and see what happens with it. I’ve been making it bit-by-bit over the last eight weeks or so,” he said.

He also said that he didn’t have a plan for building the hive, and just measured everything he was doing up against a natural beehive while he was making it.

O Leochain said no glue was used while building the hive. However, he said the bees would probably add their own where needed. “What the bees will do, given enough time, is they will propolise the whole thing,” O Leochain explained. “Propolis is a kind of glue that the bees get from trees, and with any gaps in a beehive, with any wind or air getting through, they will basically put their glue in between to seal it up.”

He added that the bees are “happy out” in their new hive, despite not being “too sure” about it at the beginning.

O Leochain set up the apiaries to make honey to sell and fund his work as a wildlife rescue and rehabilitation volunteer, and he said that he hopes to reach three million bees by next year.

Members of the public can support Athlone’s Wildlife Apiaries and O Leochain’s work by donating to its GoFundMe page. Credit: Ruairi O Leochain via Storyful