Honey bee problems
Honey bee removal

For those of you who have at one time been stung by a Honeybee - and that most likely includes the vast majority of us - you probably did not think too kindly of the bee at that moment. IT HURTS!! And, for a small percentage of people that single bee sting could even be life-threatening, as some immune systems are set off pretty violently by bee venom, and could so over-react that the victim could go into shock. Fortunately, that is uncommon, and hopefully those who are at risk are aware of that personal reaction, and are taking steps to avoid the problem.

However, generally speaking, the domesticated Honeybee - Apis mellifera - is one of the most vital and beneficial insects we have in North America, for without it we would have a very difficult time growing the quantities and varieties of foods that we do. Honeybees are the consummate pollinators, and when raised in domestic hives they cooperate with us in this effort. Along with the production of our food crops we also get the side benefit of a ready supply of honey, and I think the bees are okay with this thievery of ours, because in exchange for the honey we take from them they are provided with the safety of a healthy hive, and access to a ready supply of food for themselves.

So, we have to be careful of just a few things about Honeybees, and the sting is only one. From personal experience I'd suggest you even be careful of "dead" bees you might find lying on the ground. I once found what to this day I'd swear was a dead honeybee, and being the curious naturalist that I am I handed it to my 4 year old daughter to hold and observe. Again, I swear I thought it was dead - it even had those little "X's" in the eyes you always see in cartoons. Anyhow, a minute later it stung my daughter on the hand. Apparently the bee was only recently "dead", and there still was sufficient muscle reflex left in the bee to perform one last sting. Now, strangely, she doesn't trust me anymore.

A second problem with Honeybees is the recent arrival of the so-called "Killer Bees" in North America, at the time of this writing present throughout many of the warm southern United States, and into southern California. The more proper name for this problem is the Africanized Honey Bee, for it is exactly the same species of honeybee we've always seen, but one that evolved for millions of years in Africa, where it developed a much nastier attitude than our friendly domestic bee. In a separate BugInfo article I will talk about the Killer Bee, but not in this one.

A third problem with the Honeybee occurs when they decide that the walls of your house will make a dandy place to set up their home, and once moved in will expand the colony and live there for just about as long as you let them. Let's take a look at this phenomenon, and see how it happens and what you need to do about it.