Africanized 'Killer' Honeybees Spreading in Southern States

Tennessee Braces for Killer Bees

November 1, 2010

Chattanooga Times Free Press - Experts say the "killer bees" like those that killed a South Georgia man in October could migrate as far north as Atlanta and even make seasonal visits to Tennessee.

Tennessee officials already are preparing emergency responders in case the swarms head north.

"We're literally dealing with a new species in a new area, and we don't know how far up they are coming," said Bill Owens, a master craftsman beekeeper in Monroe, Ga., and a spokesman for the Georgia Beekeepers Association.

On Oct. 11, 73-year-old Curtis Davis was killed in Dougherty County near Albany, Ga., after he accidentally disturbed a colony of Africanized honeybees and was stung more than 100 times, according to The Associated Press. State Agriculture Commissioner Tommy Irvin issued a statement saying the incident was the first record of the so-called killer bees in Georgia.

Tennessee state bee expert Mike Studer said he and others are putting together training for emergency responders in the Volunteer State. He said he doesn't think the killer bees could form permanent colonies because of Tennessee's cold winters, but it is possible they could migrate north seasonally.

"Kind of like a wave, they would come up in the summer and leave in the winter," Studer said.

Keith Delaplane, a bee expert with the University of Georgia, issued a statement saying he believes the Dougherty County attack was "an isolated incident and (the bees) are not established in the state."

Delaplane explained that killer bees are the result of an experiment in Brazil more than 50 years ago. Scientists cross-bred the more-docile European honeybees common across the United States with their African cousins. The Africanized honeybees have been present in the United States since October 1990 and have been confirmed in Florida since 2005.

While physically similar to European bees, the African variety is "extremely defensive and responds with a massive stinging reaction with little provocation," Delaplane wrote. The venom is the same, but they overwhelm their victims by sheer quantity of stings.

"If they're African, they will follow you in great number; they're all going to come after you," said Studer, who said he had seen cases in which the bees chased people for a mile and hovered above lakes waiting for people to surface.

Owens said "it wasn't a surprise at all" that the bees were found in the Peach State. It was only a matter of time after they were discovered in Florida, he said.

While the bees' natural spread eventually may bring them north, Owens and Studer are more immediately concerned about a hive being transported by cargo trucks or vehicles.

Three weeks ago, Studer was contacted about an aggressive swarm on a cargo truck in Knoxville. The bees were killed and tested, but turned out to be European.

"We are looking for it," he said.

Killer Bees Buzzing in Texas

October 30, 2010

KBTX News 3 - The removal of 40,000 European bees from one Bryan Residents backyard has sparked a growing concern over killer bees. And with swarming season in full effect, news threes Nicole Morten talks to the experts who are urging residents to be take precaution.

Throughout the year in Texas, we have right around 500,000 colonies of bees on the move," explains Paul Jackson, Chief Apiary inspector with Texas Agrilife Extension.

"When a homeowner or someone call us and says a swarm of bees are moving into our area, we'll say in November, we will be pretty sure those will be Africanized bees," says Jackson.

More notoriously known as 'Killer Bees', Africanized bees are a hybrid of European bees and honeybees.

"African bees are on the move 12 months out of the year in the state of Texas."

Jackson says the tiny insects tend to sting with little provocation.

"They do not like perfume, hairspray or cologne, all it takes is just you casting your shadow and once they sting you, with a European bee, you may get four or five bees after you, whereas an Africanized bee you may get 50-100 or more bees after you, they react really quickly to the pheromone," says Jackson.

Similar to European bees, or honeybees, killer bees tend to make a home in empty, dry places like sheds and of course trees. With deer season in effect, Jackson says the bees also enjoy making a colony in deer stands.

Earlier this week, beekeeper Chuck Durham removed 40,000 bees from one Bryan residents backyard.

"These folks that live in this house asked us to come and remove the hive out of the tree, the bees were fairly docile."

Although the bees Durham removed were European bees, both experts share the same word of advice,

"Call the exterminator and have them removed from your property."

Bees Go from Nuisance to Danger in Arizona

October 27, 2010

The Sierra Vista Herald - For a couple of months, James Talbot and his family had been living with a colony of bees that had established a hive in an open space under their Hereford home.

"They weren't bothering us at all," said Talbot. "They just went about their business and left us alone, so we really weren't that concerned they were here."

But Tuesday evening, that changed. The bees aggressively attacked the family dog, stinging him so severely, the 7-year-old Walker coonhound died not long after the attack. In addition, Talbot's 12-year-old son was stung four times.

That's when Reed Booth, also known as "The Killer Bee Guy," was contacted to help with the situation.

On Wednesday afternoon, Booth and his assistant Art Velarde arrived at the Talbot home to take care of the problem.

"For some reason, the bees are meaner than ever this year," said Booth, who has been in the bee removal business for 20 years now. "More people are getting stung than in past years and bees are becoming more aggressive."

In most situations, Booth attempts to remove the entire bee colony from a property where the bees are a concern. He transports them to his own property and uses them for honey production. But in this case, since the bees had already attacked, they were actively swarming around the hive and were so aggressive, he was forced to kill them.

"All bee situations are dangerous and are a bomb waiting to go off," warned Booth. "When you see a ball of bees hanging in a tree, swarms or hives, get them removed before an attack happens."

All honeybees in Arizona are now killer bees, he added.

Africanized Honeybees Found in Georgia; Georgia Man Killed in Bee Swarm

October 21, 2010

Georgia Department of Agriculture - Entomological tests have confirmed that Africanized honeybees were responsible for the death of an elderly man in Dougherty County last week. News reports say the man accidentally disturbed a feral colony of bees with his bulldozer and that he received more than 100 stings.

"This is the first record of Africanized honeybees in Georgia," said Agriculture Commissioner Tommy Irvin.

"The Georgia Department of Agriculture is going to continue its trapping and monitoring of bee swarms to try to find where any Africanized honeybees are," said Commissioner Irvin. "We also want to educate people about what to do in case they encounter a colony of Africanized honeybees. Georgians can visit our website for more information. The University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Service has a publication on Africanized honeybees that is available online or at Extension offices."

Here is more information from the Georgia Department of Agriculture:

Africanized Honeybees
• Are very defensive of their nest (also referred to as a colony or hive).
• Respond quickly and sting in large numbers.
• Can sense a threat from people or animals 50 feet or more from nest.
• Sense vibrations from power equipment 100 feet or more from nest.
• Will pursue a perceived enemy ¼ mile or more.
• Swarm frequently to establish new nests.
• Nest in small cavities and sheltered areas.

Possible nest sites may include: empty boxes, cans, buckets, or other containers; old tires; infrequently used vehicles; lumber piles; holes and cavities in fences, trees, or the ground; sheds, garages and other outbuildings; and low decks or spaces under buildings.

General Precautions
• Be careful wherever bees may be found.
• Listen for buzzing – indicating a nest or swarm of bees.
• Use care when entering sheds or outbuildings where bees may nest.
• Examine work area before using lawn mowers and other power equipment.
• Examine areas before penning pets or livestock.
• Be alert when participating in all outdoor sports and activities.
• Don't disturb a nest or swarm – contact a pest control company or your Cooperative Extension office.
• Teach children to respect all bees.
• Check with a doctor about bee sting kits and procedures if sensitive to bee stings.
• Remove possible nest sites around home and seal openings larger than 1/8" in walls and around chimneys and plumbing.

As a general rule, stay away from all honeybee swarms and colonies. If bees are encountered, get away quickly. Do not stand and swat as this will only invite more stings. If you are stung, try to protect your face and eyes as much as possible and run away from the area. Take shelter in a car or building, and do not worry if a few bees follow you inside. It is better to have a few in the car with you than the thousands waiting outside. Hiding in water or thick brush does not offer enough protection.

What to Do if Stung
• First, go quickly to a safe area.
• Scrape – do not pull – stingers from skin as soon as possible. The stinger pumps out most of the venom during the first minute. Pulling the stinger out will likely cause more venom to be injected into the skin.
• Wash sting area with soap and water like any other wound.
• Apply an ice pack for a few minutes to relieve pain and swelling.
• Seek medical attention if breathing is troubled, if stung numerous times or if allergic to bee stings.

Don't Forget!
Hives of European honeybees managed by beekeepers play an important role in our lives. These bees are necessary for the pollination of many crops. One-third of our diet relies on honeybee pollination.

People can coexist with the Africanized honeybee by learning about the bee and its habits, supporting beekeeping efforts and taking a few precautions.

• Africanized honey bees swarm more frequently than other honey bees.
• Unlike typical hives that swarm once every 12 months with a new queen going off with the swarm and the old queen staying behind, Africanized honey bees may swarm as often as every 6 weeks and produce a couple of separate swarms each time.
• Since Africanized honey bees swarm more often, the likelihood of encountering a swarm increases significantly.
• Africanized honey bees are less selective about where they nest than European honey bees. They will occupy much smaller spaces than other hives and have found in old tires, overturned flower pots and mailboxes.
• Regardless of myths to the contrary, Africanized honey bees do not fly out in angry swarms to randomly attack unlucky victims.
• However they defend a much larger territory than European honey bees and are extremely aggressive when protecting their territory and their brood.

If attacked:
• RUN. Do not stop to help others. However, small children and the disabled may need assistance.
• As you are running, pull your shirt over your head to protect your face, but make sure it does not slow your progress. This will help keep the bees from targeting your head and eyes.
• Continue to RUN. Do not stop running until you reach shelter.
• Do not jump into water. The bees will wait for you to come up for air.
• If you are trapped, cover up with blankets, sleeping bags, clothes or whatever is available.
• Do not swat at the bees or flail your arms. Bees are attracted to movement and crushed bees produce a smell that will attract more bees. If you have been stung more than 15 times, or are feeling ill, or if you have any reason to believe you may be allergic to bee stings, seek medical attention immediately.
• The average person can safely tolerate 10 stings per pound of body weight. This means that although 500 stings can kill a child, the average adult could withstand more than 1,100 stings.

When you reach shelter
• When you reach shelter or have outrun the bees, remove all stingers. When honey bees sting, it leaves its stinger in the skin. This kills the bee so it can't sting again, but it also means the venom continues to enter the wound for a short time.
• DO NOT PULL OUT STINGERS WITH TWEEZERS OR YOUR FINGERS. This will squeeze more venom into the wound. Instead, scrape the stinger out using your fingernail, the edge of a credit card, a dull knife blade or other straight-edged object.

If you see someone being attacked by bees
• Do not attempt to rescue someone being attacked by bees yourself!
• Encourage them to run away or seek shelter.
• Call 911 to report a serious stinging attack.

Tree Trimmer in Florida Attacked by Killer Bees

August 10, 2010

Petersburg Times - The Africanized honeybees swarmed the tree trimmer's head and within seconds, his whole body.

"They were inside my ears, my mouth, my nose - everywhere," Ralph St. Peter said Monday, two days after the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office said he was stung as many as 150 times. "They had to cut my clothes off. My whole body was encased in bees."

He said the stings of the bees felt "like a 1,000 hypodermic needles" or "a tetanus shot."

Co-worker Michael Foster, who swatted off the bees with his bare hands and also was stung, said St. Peter was swollen to the point that he looked like another "one-and-a-half persons, like he got hit by a truck."

Both men were taken to Mease Countryside Hospital. Doctors treated St. Peter on Saturday and released him Sunday ...

St. Peter said he's heard of the Africanized honeybee, but all of his encounters have been with domestic honeybees.

Florida's Africanized honeybee population is increasing, according to University of Florida researchers. They are referred to -- often and inaccurately -- as aggressive killer bees. The bees do not plot attacks on humans, James D. Ellis Jr. and Faith M. Oi said in a 2006 study. They react to human invasion of their environment and defend themselves when necessary. Attacks occur when people get too close to a nesting colony of bees.

That's exactly what happened about 1:45 p.m. Saturday. St. Peter leaned a ladder against a tree and climbed to the top. He attached a safety line to his body so he could rappel down the tree in the event a swarm of bees emerged. His line got stuck in the limbs.

"All of a sudden 50,000 bees came out of the hollow log," he said. "And it's like they came right towards me. It was amazing. The cloud of bees was so thick you couldn't see through it."

He screamed to his colleagues for help.

"But every time I opened my mouth, my mouth would get full of bees and I'd have to spit more bees out," he said. "And finally they understood (to) get me a knife so they got me a knife and I cut myself down and we all ran over to the picnic tables over there."

Doctors gave him pain medicine, and the swelling subsided.