Photo gallery: Nuremberg airport beekeepers

They do not need take-off permission from the tower, nor do they have to be guided by follow-me vehicles: around 120.000 honey bees buzz over the outside areas of Albrecht Dürer Airport Nuremberg and make a valuable contribution to environmental monitoring. They are looked after by Isabella Gebhard and other volunteers, who actually have completely different jobs at the airport.

The airport has been practicing so-called biomonitoring since 2003. Indicators are determined with the help of the diligent honey collectors by analyzing honey and pollen and examining possible background pollution. A team of hobby beekeepers takes care of the airport's own colonies. Isabella Gebhard and Oliver Königsdörfer have been joined by Mario Paulick and Oliver Beckmann since the beginning of the year. They are supported by former airport beekeeper Erwin Schmidt, who retired in 2021 and has been caring for the bees for years.