Oh, Hap-Bee Day!

It happened.

Remember when Chicken Little ran around yelling "The sky is falling! The sky is falling!"

For almond growers, beekeepers, entomologists, researchers and artists, it's "The almonds are blooming! The almonds are blooming!"

Finally, the almond trees at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility at UC Davis burst into bloom today. They still have a long way to go for a full bloom--but this is a start.

These are Sue's bees.

That would be bee breeder-geneticist Susan Cobey with her line of New World Carniolians.

Her nectar-sipping, pollen-packin' bees are back in action after the winter doldrums, which are turning into spring frenzies. 

Soon: the big spring buildup in the colonies.

But for now, "The almonds are blooming! The almonds are blooming!"

Oh, hap-bee day!