Yikes have any of you read about or heard the news from Bisbee Arizona about the 600 lb. pig that was stung to death by africanized honey bees this week. They had found a 200 lb bee nest in the attic space above the pigs pen after the bee's where destroyed. They had also attacked a sow on the same farm. She went into a coma, aborted her piglets but did survive. Then there was another Arizona guy in a wheelchair who was attacked by bee's in a different location. Two guy's who heard him calling for help pulled him into their car and were also stung really bad. All three of them ended up in the hospital. They said that for some reason the bee's have been more aggressive this year. Wow how scarey to think of being attacked by bee's and being in a wheelchair. I'm sure he was so thankful for those other 2 guy's that risked their lives to save him. I know I would be.
It seems that there have been quite a few attacks across Arizona from these Africanized bees. The bees have attacked both animals and humans, as you said, and are way more aggressive than our usual type of honey bee. I found this information at About.com: "The sting of the Africanized Honey Bee is no more potent than your garden variety honey bee and they look pretty much the same. What makes AHBs more dangerous is that they are more easily provoked, quick to swarm, attack in greater numbers, and pursue their victims for greater distances. The AHB colony can remain agitated longer and may attack up to a quarter of a mile away from the hive. AHB colonies can be very large, and they are not particularly selective about the location of their hives. The Queen Africanized bee can lay up to 1,500 eggs a day. AHBs are likely to develop near canals, drainage ditches and retention basins because they like to be near water. When they sense rain, they swarm. In Arizona, the AHB colonies have grown and the more aggressive colonies are the ones that have survived the droughts of the past few years. The summer is the peak period for bee attacks because there is less honey, and the bees become more protective of their hives." I'm so glad those two men were around to help the chap in the wheelchair when he was being stung. I dread to think what could have happened to him had they not heard him call out.
YIKES! I wonder what their migration pattern is? . . . makes me think twice about mowing around our honey bee hive . . .
I did hear about this and it makes me sad for all those who are "victims" of this awful strain of bees. These are undoubtedly the worst insect mishap anyone can be subjected to. I don't think I would keep bees if I lived in the areas where these are at. I do know you aren't allowed to collect swarms in California due to this problem. I don't know about AZ. It sure wasn't a brilliant move on the breeder who came up with this strain.
Yikes....they seem so aggressive ...I hope I don't meet up with them. My husband is allergic to bees and it is people like him that will suffer the most if attacked if they make it at all. With that many bees attacking at one time, can be too much on a body.
The Africanized Bees accidently escaped from a hive in Brazil in 1957 where a biologist had interbred honey bees from Europe and Africa wanting to create a bee more adaptable to tropical climates. He had very tight safe guards on his hives but a helper accidently let some escape. They have been moving north from Brazil since then following the food supply and along the way breeding with local bees and/or taking over the colonies of local bees. They reached far south tip of Texas in 1990 and have since spread from western Louisiana across the southwestern states to southern California. Pretty much all of Texas, southern part of New Mexico, all of Arizona into Nevada and southern Calif have reported hives of them. The general belief has been that they will not spread too far north because of the cooler temperatures. But who knows.
We got together with my hubbies brother and his wife last night. We were talking about this and that and I had mentioned about the bee's attacking the pig and killing it. Carol my sister in-law said that last year around this time she had gone outside to visit her neighbor. As she walked past a tree behind her garage she could see a mass of something dark hanging down from one of the branch's close to the garage. She went in the house and came out about 15 min. later to check and see if she could tell what the dark mass was. As she got closer to the tree she could see that the mass was now about 3ft. long and moving. It was a honey bee swarm. She called around and got a bee keeper to come and remove the swarm. Both of them were really happy. She to get rid of the bee's and he to get the bee's for his hives. I'll see if I can have her email me a pic and will post it. Thanks for all the input.
Song of Joy, bees don't migrate. They do spread, as in the case of the Africanized bees, by breeding and starting new colonies (hives) which means the type of bee, but not the original bees, slowly move. We are in Texas, which has Africanized bees, and we keep honeybees. Ours are Italian bees and very docile. We keep a close eye on our hives and have had no trouble with Africanized bees trying to move in. When someone says they have a swarm of honeybees and want us to get them, we ask where the bees are (in the ground, not honeybees) and what they are doing. Sometimes a queen will go on a "dating flight" and some of the drones get enthusiastic. This isn't a swarm, but a special moment in the life of a queen, and she shouldn't be disturbed!
Tooty, A swarm of regular honey bees is usually quite harmless. the only stings occur when a bee gets pinched or swatted and hit. I have collected swarms in sandals and shorts before. They are generally very calm and quiet. They do not do well as a swarm if they have been hanging in the same spot for a few days and then some one decides to collect them. at this point they will have already started to make comb and become "hive" mentality. which is about the same response as if you were invading an existing well established hive. They are protecting their queen, brood and honey stores. In a swarm the bees have nothing to protect, therefore they don't "protect anything".
Yup Carolyn that's what the bee keeper told my sister in-law when he came over to get the swarm that was forming in her back yard tree. That they wouldn't harm her. She couldn't believe he just went up to the swarm with no protection, cut the branch and placed it in a bag. With the bee's not minding at all. I see honey bee's out here by us I am so glad to see them. :-D
OUCH on those African bees.. I do like our tame honey bees, they never bother me like wasps, hornets or yellow jackets will. Missouri lost most of its bees a few years ago, but they are slowly coming back again.
AAnightowl glad to hear that your honey bees are coming back. They sure are having a struggle keeping their numbers up because of that disease that has attacked them in recent years.
