Killer bees moving north, may soon reach Utah

    141

    By TIFFANY GEE

    In our lovely Deseret …

    Utahns might soon be singing to a different tune as killer bees work their way to the Utah border.

    The killer bee, more accurately known as the Africanized honey bee, has been detected in Mesquite, Nev., which lies on the southern border of Utah, just below St. George.

    Originally it was thought that Africanized bees wouldn’t spread north because of the cold weather, but as the bees have bred with European bees, they have been able to adapt to the colder weather, said Eric Erickson, PhD., director of the Carl Hayden Bee Research Center in Tucson, Ariz.

    Breeding with other honey bees has not diluted the higher swarming rate of the Africanized bee, Erickson said.

    In the west, Africanized bees are a particular problem in urban areas, Erickson said.

    Africanized bees require three things to survive: freestanding water, blooming plants and a nesting place, he said.

    “All these things can be found in urban areas,” Erickson said.

    Since Africanized honey bees entered the United States in 1990, they have been responsible for seven deaths. However, all deaths involved individuals over the age of 65, said Gina Stoneking, Africanized honey bee coordinator at the Nevada Department of Agriculture.

    The average person can handle six stings per pound of body weight without it being life threatening, Erickson said. However, the people who died from the Africanized bees received far fewer stings.

    “Those that died probably had a mitigating health condition and their immune system just couldn’t handle it,” Erickson said.

    “The elderly should be particularly cautious.”

    The term killer bee is actually a misnomer. Africanized honey bees are slightly less venomous than the standard European honey bee that inhabits North America, said Sam Lefevre, surveillance manager for the bureau of epidamology at the Utah Department of Health.

    Multiple stings from either type of bee increases the risk of death, he said.

    Africanized bees swarm 10 times more frequently than European honey bees, and are more aggresive, Erickson said.

    “The difference between the bees is that Africanized bees are a little bit more skiddish. It takes a lot less of a human presence for the Africanized breed to swarm,” Lefevre said.

    They are most easily provoked by the breath of mammals and the vibration from machinery, such as a lawn mower, Erickson said.

    Africanized bees pose the biggest threat to pets, Erickson said.

    Dogs and horses are at high risk because they can’t run away from a swarm of bees when attacked, he said.

    Two dogs have been stung to death in Las Vegas since the Africanized bees entered the city, Stoneking said. Both dogs were tied up and could not escape the swarm, she said.

    “Pets, livestock, the elderly and the very young are at risk,” Stoneking said.

    The idea of the killer bee has been sensationalized, Stoneking said. A lot of people are scared of bees in their gardens or flying around in the air, but the bees are not out to seek and destroy, Stoneking said.

    “At this point we’re trying to concentrate on education, that bees can be more aggressive than people thought in the past,” Stoneking said.

    There is no way for the average person to tell the difference between an Africanized bee and a European bee, Erickson said.

    Traveling at a rate of 200 to 300 miles per year, the Africanized honey bees have traveled north from Brazil since they were accidentally released in 1957.

    However, most people will never encounter Africanized bees, Erickson said.

    “Awareness is the best defense,” he said.

    If a person is attacked by a swarm of bees, they should go inside a car or house, Erickson said. If they are in an open area, they should get away from the area as quickly as possible, he said.

    A person with more than 15 bee stings should seek medical attention, he said.

    Professionals should be called in to remove hives and get rid of bees, Erickson said.

    For Nevada, the appearance of the Africanized bee hasn’t been negative.

    The European bee has been dying off in Nevada because of diseases, Stoneking said.

    “The Africanized bee will help agriculture in the state,” Stoneking said.

    Print Friendly, PDF & Email