What Is the Difference Between Africanized Killer Bees & Normal Bees?

Origin

• In 1956, a geneticist brought African queens to Brazil for experimentation. In 1957, they escaped and quickly began interbreeding in the wild with the local European honey bees. The result was an "Africanized" hybrid. These Africanized honey bees have been moving northward ever since. As of 2011, they have been reported as far west as California and as far as north as Colorado.

Size

• The average European worker bee is 0.375 to 0.5 inches long. The Africanized worker is 10 to 20 percent smaller. However, this size difference cannot be identified with the naked eye. Laboratory examination and computer analysis are required using the Fast Africanized Bee Identification System (FABIS).

Queens

• New Africanized queens emerge up to a day sooner than European queens. This enables them to kill any European rivals. Africanized queens are also more effective fighters, which improves their survival rate. African honey bee swarms will also invade European colonies and replace its queen with an Africanized queen.

Nesting

• European honey bees rarely build nests on the ground or in exposed locations. Africanized honey bees will build a nest anywhere they can find a hole large enough to fit through. If they can't find a suitable concealed location, they nest in the ground or in tree branches. The Africanized nests are also smaller than the European nests and can fit into tighter spaces.

Swarming and Absconding

• European honey bees swarm once or twice a year. The Africanized honey bees swarm 10 or more times a year, which allows them to colonize much larger areas. Furthermore, the Africanized bees will completely abandon or "abscond" their nests whenever environmental factors are unfavorable. European honey bees rarely ever abscond.

Defensive Behavior

• European honey bees typically defend their nest up to 20 yards. They will send 10 to 20 guards out when agitated or provoked. Africanized honey bees will defend the nest up to 100 yards with more than 100 guards. There is no difference between the venom of the two bees. The danger posed by Africanized stings lies in the numbers of stings for any given attack. Once agitated, European honey bees typically calm down within one to two hours, while Africanized bees will remain on the defensive for several days.