Muhammad Ali: Bee swarm settles outside boxer's 'Float Like A Butterfly, Sting Like A Bee' mural

'The irony is not lost on me at all,' says local beekeeper

Local beekeeper Kevin McKinney told WLKY there were about 15,000 bees in the swarm (Getty Images)

Muhammad Ali is famed for a lengthy list of quotes but it is his declaration he would "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee" before his 1974 fight with George Foreman which is most exalted of all.

In a timely tribute to the late boxing legend who died on Friday night, a literal swarm of bees have taken note and gathered outside a mural bearing the iconic quote.

According to CBS affiliate news site WLKY, the bees have settled in a tree next to the mural outside Ali’s childhood home in Louisville, Kentucky.

Local beekeeper Kevin McKinney told WLKY there were about 15,000 bees in the swarm. "The irony is not lost on me at all," he remarked, adding that this was the first swarm he had ever spotted in the tree next to the mural.

The bees showed up on Sunday morning, just days after Ali's death, and are in viewing distance of the memorial where thousands of people are paying their respects to Ali with bouquets of flowers and notes.

Across the world, fans have paid tribute to the celebrated boxer and social justice campaigner. Ali passed away after being admitted to hospital with a respiratory condition earlier this week and had experienced Parkinson’s disease for almost 30 years.