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You are here: Home / Science / Are killer bees more poisonous or dangerous than regular bees?

Are killer bees more poisonous or dangerous than regular bees?

April 14, 2020 by Karen Hill

“Killer bees,” properly known as Africanized honeybees, are not more poisonous than other honeybees.

They are, however, much more aggressive than the gentle European honeybee when they feel threatened or encroached upon, and are more likely to kill people or animals by bombarding them and delivering multiple bee stings.

There’s a reason behind this aggressiveness. Conditions in Africa are rather harsh compared to the soft, moist climates of Europe and the Americas. To compensate for an environment that often has little food and water, these bees developed a higher level of aggression and the ability to produce a whole lot of honey on short notice.

That high-volume honey production was too good to pass up for apiculturists (beekeepers). In 1956 a geneticist named Warwick Kerr brought African honeybees to Brazil in an effort to crossbreed them with more docile European honeybees.

His plan didn’t quite work so well—, his bees and their offspring never eased up on their aggressiveness. Worse, they escaped from captivity and started displacing the gentler honeybees.

South American beekeepers simply got used to working with the more aggressive bees by taking greater precautions and using thicker bee suits.

Related Facts

  • Where Do Killer Bees Come From and Why Are Killer Bees More Poisonous Than Regular Bees?
  • How do bees know how to build honeycombs in their hives so perfectly?
  • How do Beekeepers extract Honey out of a Honeycomb and Where does Honey come from?
  • Do Killer Bees Really Exist?
  • How Do Bees Make Honey and How Do Bees Protect Honey Against Bacteria and Microorganisms?
  • How Do Bees Find Their Way Back To the Bee Hive and Can Lost Bees Find a New Home In Another Bee Colony?

Filed Under: Science

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

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