![]() At times, Africanized honey bees will form nests outside of voids with comb exposed, but those will generally not sustain through cold months. They have been known to form nests in unused BBQ pits, trash cans, and other objects. Habitat & HostsĪfricanized honey bees are void nesters and will nest in hollow tree holes and stumps, eves of buildings, and any other cavity. As a result, Africanized honey bee testing is no longer performed in Texas. In 2006, Africanized honey bees had been detected in 163 of 254 Texas counties, and it is assumed that feral bee colonies from any county within the state will test positive for the Africanized honey bee gene. Natural migration of the bees has allowed them to spread throughout all of Texas. The bees quickly started to spread, reaching south Texas by 1990.Īfricanized honey bees today are considered a hybrid of European honey bees and the African honey bee queens that spread from Brazil. During this time, Brazil was looking for ways to improve their honey production and introduced honey bees from tropical Africa in an attempt to establish a more successful honey bee. ![]() ![]() Origin and DistributionĪfricanized honey bees were introduced into the Americas in the mid 1950’s by way of Brazil. Their degree of aggression and temperament vary considerably. Therefore, an Africanized honey bee in the US is one that contains the Africanized bee gene. However, since all races can mate with one another, all races can interbreed. mellifera with varying characteristics and beekeepers take advantage of these races and have bred new races to produce bees with desirable traits such as gentleness or good honey production. ![]() Africanized honey bees look identical to European honey bees. However, since all races can mate, all races can interbreed.Īfricanized honey bees are a race or variety of the honey bee Apis mellifera. mellifera with varying characteristics.īeekeepers have taken advantage of these races and bred new races to produce bees with desirable traits such as gentleness or good honey production. Molly Keck, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension ServiceArticle author: Molly Keck Most recently reviewed by: Dalton Ludwick (2020) Common Name(s): Africanized Honey Bee, Killer bees DescriptionĪfricanized honey bees are a race or variety of the honey bee Apis mellifera. ![]()
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