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Africanized Bees 
The Africanized honey bee, popularly known as the "killer bee," is moving into South Texas and the southern United States. Scientists are not certain how far north the bee will spread, but they do know that it will cause problems wherever it resides in large numbers.
This insect, which has been migrating from South America since the 1950's, looks just like a domestic honey bee, but it is not nearly as good natured. In fact, it has a bit of a quick temper. The domestic bee has lived in harmony with human beings for hundreds of years. It has been bred for gentleness and good honey production.
By contrast, the Africanized bee is a "wild" bee that is not comfortable being around people or animals. Any colony of bees will defend its hive, but Africanized bees do so with gusto. These bees are more likely to sense a threat at greater distances, become more upset with less reason, and sting in much greater numbers. DescriptionIt is extremely difficult to distinguish AHB from European Honey Bees (EHB). Only after complex laboratory analysis of morphological characters is it possible to state the probability that a group of bees is Africanized. That is, scientists have developed a probability table using 0.00 to indicate absolute assurance that bees are European and 1.00 to indicate absolute assurance that bees are Africanized. History and Economic ImportanceMajor behaviorial differences which distinguish AHB from EHB are general exitability, defensiveness, frequent swarming, and an ability to nest in a wide range of sites. Swarming is the primary mode of spread. When a swarm finds a suitable nesting site, it may nest there and construct combs. If a shortage of food, water, or space develops, a swarm will move (abscond) to a more suitable location. As the number of bees in the nest increase, they produce reproductive swarms which seek new nesting sites. Reproductive swarming can occur every six weeks, especially during heavy nectar flow periods. Life CycleThe following is a brief description of the complete metamorphasis:
Hosts and DamageGenerally, most flowering plants are hosts for honey bees. However, some species seem to be more attractive than others to bees. In general terms, the herbaceaous annual and perennial species in North America which are more than usually attractive include mints, milkweeds, clovers, and asters. Mountain mint and swamp milkweed seem to be the most attractive species documented at this time. |
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