A Manhattan man has bought 30,000 bees that were found in the bell tower of Community Baptist Church in Cutchogue.

Evan Bell says he had the winning bid of $700. The bees were collected last week by beekeeper Ken Robins and then auctioned off by the church.

Bell says a healthy hive can get to 70,000 bees, so 30,000 is a good number for his own hive at his house in Mattituck.

Bell says he wants to do his part to help save the species due to the honeybee population declining.

Bell will be collecting his bees and moving them to their new home in Mattituck this coming weekend.