Killer Bee Information

Identification

• Though slightly smaller in size, Africanized honey bees are virtually indistinguishable from European honey bees when viewed with the naked eye. Like other honey bees, killer bees have four wings and hairy, slightly rounded bodies. Africanized honey bee workers measure less than five eighths of an inch in length, and are normally brown or black with small yellow stripes on their abdomens.

Distribution and Habitat

• Originally native to southern Africa, killer bees have expanded their distribution greatly during the past several decades. The range of Africanized bees now includes New World tropical hybrid zones, from the American southwest to northern Argentina. Africanized honey bees are opportunistic, and will build their nests in almost any environment. Malcolm T. Sanford and H. Glenn Hall of the University of Florida suggest that these adaptive traits have allowed Africanized honey bees to spread as quickly as they have.

Behavior

• Africanized honey bees are extremely social insects that will work together to defend their nesting site. Killer bees are very sensitive to intrusion and will defend their nest and the area around it very vigorously, sometimes remaining agitated for up to 24 hours after the initial disturbance.

Effects

• Like all honey bees, killer bees are invaluable as pollinators of plants. Honey bees in the United States pollinate cultivated crops, which accounts for an estimated $9 billion annual benefit for producers. However, Africanized honey bees make considerably less honey than European honey bees and therefore are detrimental to honey production. According to scientists at the University of California, Riverside, the arrival of Africanized honey bees has reduced profits for many beekeepers, and has fundamentally changed beekeeping practices.

Misconceptions

• Many myths surround the Africanized honey bee and its supposed deadly sting. The venom found in the stinger of the Africanized honey bee is no more potent than that of the European honey bee, and contrary to popular legend, they cannot sting repeatedly. The Florida Department of Agriculture suggests that the name "killer bee" comes not from the potency of the insect's sting, but rather their aggressiveness and their tendency to swarm.