Two Aboyne teenagers are a-buzz with excitement after being picked to represent Scotland in an International Beekeeping competition this summer.
Tarland Bee Group members Martin Leahy and Sean Dinnie, both 14, were chosen by the Scottish Bee Association after they had combed the country for young talent.
Martin will travel to the International Meeting of Young Beekeepers in France and will form part of a trio from Scotland, while Sean will be held in reserve in case anyone else cannot make the trip.
Last night, Martin said he was looking forward to the opportunity and had been beekeeping since the age of nine.
“I had to go along to meetings with my mum when she joined the Tarland Group, so I just kind of fell into it,” he said.
“I have four hives of my own now, each containing around 50,000 bees.
“We tend to keep all our honey, but sometimes sell it at the farmers’ market if we have too much.”
The rest of the Scottish team are made up of Angus Rintoul, 17, from East Kilbride and Harriet Sweatman, 15 from Edinburgh.
They will be joined by 18 other countries at the four-day event which this year is being held in Nerac, near Bordeaux.
Team leader for the Scottish Beekeers Association, Bron Wright said she was “hopeful” of bringing home a medal this year.
She said: “This is only the second year Scotland have entered a team – last year we had one entrant who did exceptionally well.
“This year we got 18 applicants and had to shortlist them. It’s fantastic to see so many young people taking up the hobby.
“Last year we met teams from as far away as India and Belarus.”
The Tarland Bee Group’s spokeswoman Yvonne Davidson last night said she was “delighted” that two of her members had been selected, adding: “This is an amazing opportunity for international learning in the field of beekeeping where teams will be made up of individuals from different countries, encouraging international cooperation and learning.”
The youngsters will join in with events including bee handling, equipment identification, questions about bee behaviour, bee anatomy and botany as well as disease identification and microscopic analysis. There will be prizes for the best team and also the best three individuals.
For more information, visit www.scottishbeekeepers.org.uk
