About 5 pounds of honeybees were removed from the stage scaffolding at Acrisure Stadium on Wednesday, clearing the area ahead of Morgan Wallen’s back-to-back Pittsburgh concerts. The swarm was found just before the June 5 and June 6 shows, and the removal took less than two hours.
Al Fine of the Fine Family Apiary in Forward Township said the call came in Wednesday about a swarm of bees clustered on the stage scaffolding. His crew placed the bees in a nuc box, brought them home and later moved them into full-size equipment. Fine estimated the swarm weighed about 4 to 5 pounds and contained roughly 12,000 to 15,000 bees.
The timing mattered because Acrisure Stadium was getting ready for major live shows. Wallen’s I’m The Problem Tour is set to stop in Pittsburgh on June 5 and June 6, with Brooks & Dunn and Ella Langley among the acts joining the dates. The bee removal meant the stage area could be cleared before the crowds arrived.
Honeybees swarm when a colony splits, with the queen and about half the workers leaving their home to start a new nest. They often cluster for hours or even days while scouts search for a more permanent spot, which is why a patch of bees can suddenly appear on scaffolding, signs or trees without warning. In this case, the cluster was gone before the concerts began, and the only thing left buzzing at the stadium was the show itself.
