It's kinda neat....I think

I saw Dad out doing some spot watering around the azaleas and got his attention through the dining room window. He motioned to a place in the flower bed and said, "Yellow Jackets!". I went running out, thinking I was going to be killing a bunch of bees (especially since as far as we know, he's still allergic to stings!) and saw that they are the same kind of little bees that are all around my hummingbird feeders. I was able to get down low and watch them. They were, and I mean THEY by the hundreds, were going into a hole in the ground. In and out, in and out. Small bees. Not the angry yellow jacket-type that Dad thought they were. I called Grandpa because we had been talking about bees yesterday on the phone. He had told me that I probably had a hive somewhere around the yard since I have so many around the hummingbird feeders. "Do bees hive under ground?" "Not usually," he told me. (I really wasn't surprised by the answer since 'usually' doesn't apply to us around here much.) To shorten this story, I have called the Richmond County Extension Service and left a voice mail for someone to call me back.....probably on Monday (oops! Labor Day) or Tuesday. I don't want them killed. They're not hurting anybody. But I am curious as to what lies beyond the surface. I'll keep you posted.