Attacks appear out of nowhere
“Killer Bees,” back in the news last week when they attacked a man and a woman in the 7000 block of East State Hwy. 107, while they were doing yard work that included the use of loud equipment.
No news yet on their condition. Seven years ago, November 2017, the bees made headlines when a hive in Harlingen was taken down, which contained an estimated 30,000 of the Africanized bees, nicknamed “Killer Bees” because of their aggressiveness and killer potential.
The weekend prior, the bees sent six people to a Harlingen hospital after attacking a crowd of approximately 50 near Arroyo City.
Like the Y2K scare, the arrival of the Africanized bees turned out less eventful than branded. Some claimed that the Killer Bees phenomenon had been hyped by the press, while the press claimed it was just relaying what scientists were saying about their possible behavior once they reached the states.
Unlike a Killer Bee movie released in 1978, The Swarm, no cities were attacked en masse. Still, for those who did survive a Killer “Africanized” Bee attack, the photos of the stings over their bodies was enough to sit up and take notice when they heard the sound of a buzz.
Problem with the Killer Bees, though, was by the time one heard the sound of a buzz, it was too late to…run. The Africanized bees were already in full attack mode, just looking for a victim.
The Swarm
Hard to believe it will be 34 years ago come next month, October of 1990, that the hybrid bees first made it across the Rio Grande to land in the city of Hidalgo.
Eighteen months later, April of 1992, San Antonio became the first major U.S. city to confront the potential yellow-and-black threat.
To its credit, Hidalgo eventually turned the bees into a money-making event.
A minor league hockey team landed there for a spell — the Killer Bees, 2003 to 2012 — and the city also branded itself the “Killer Bee Capital of the World.”
The city’s EDC spent 20 grand to erect a 2,000-pound massive statue of a Killer Bee and even sold postcards and posters featuring the stinging insect.
Speaking about the Killer Bees, one of the main bee removal experts, who is based out of Arizona, Reed Booth, has this quote affixed to his name: “It isn't a dimmer switch with them. It isn’t oh, they're a little angry. It’s an on/off switch. They don’t care about you at all — and the next second you're dead.”
It’s also hard to run from them, said Booth, pointing toward his work vehicle: “…in 15 seconds, you can have 15,000 angry bees out, and they’ve chased this truck for two miles.” (Source: KOLD. com.)
Consider the story of 91-year-old Manuel Treviño, who was stung an estimated 1,000 times while cutting brush at his ranch west of Corpus in 2007.
Tough as nails, the old farmer survived, even though it took medical staff 12 days to remove all the bee stingers and place him under dialysis treatment after the bee venom shut down his kidneys.
Still, for some people, the last thing they’re thinking of as they mow their lawn, their field, or just head out for a walk near some foliage, is, what are the odds of running into a swarm of Killer Bees?
For most of us, the answer is, slim to none.
Still, for those who do get stung multiple times, it’s a painful reminder that the Africanized bees are out there, building huge hives that often remain completely out of sight. We’re just not thinking about the Africanized bees as much as we used to. Sure, it’s more than a little sad when a local death is reported — victim stung thousands of times by the Africanized bees — but not long after that, thinking about bees very often stays on the back burner.
Back in the decade of the 1970s, things were a lot different. Everywhere on the Silver Screen, the Disaster-Film craze was on fire, both figuratively and literally if you include “The Towering Inferno."
Add to that movie, which starred both McQueen and Paul Newman, other films like “Airport,” and “The Poseidon Adventure,” along with “Earthquake,” and “The Andromeda Strain” had people screaming for relief, from either the on-screen horror trying to kill the film’s lead actors or the lost dollars paid to see a flop.
In 1978, “The Swarm” was released to much fanfare. It was, in fact, about a swarm of Killer Bees attacking Texas. First in South Texas before the bee swarm buzzed its way to Houston, where the Killer Bees were finally taken out over the Gulf with the help of a fire hose, some oil, and seawater.
Throughout the 1980s, we heard of a swarm of Killer Bees moving to the U.S. from their original home in South America.
What would life be like here once they arrived?
Turns out, as already mentioned in this story, the hype was overblown, but before long, actual attacks started occurring, and farmers with open tractors were trading up for an enclosed cab.
Bee Protection
In 2000, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Forest Service released a paper titled, “Working Safely in Areas with Africanized Honey Bees.”
One paragraph read: “The individual Africanized honeybee looks just like the European honeybee. A single sting from an Africanized honeybee is no different than the single sting of a European honeybee. Like the European honeybee, the Africanized honeybee loses its stinger and dies when it stings, so a single bee can sting only once.”
Sure, but what’s the other part to this story?
“While a single sting may not be dangerous, the bee has marked you as a target for other bees. Africanized honeybees aggressively attack the target in large numbers until the target ceases to be a threat or leaves the area. The area the Africanized honey bees defends may be much larger than the area defended by European honey bees.”
That scenario played out last August in Edinburg, and the 71-year-old victim didn’t pull through after a swarm of Africanized bees attacked him, mid-afternoon.
The Killer Bees, though, or more appropriately, the Africanized honey bees (AHBs), wouldn’t even exist if not for man’s stupidity, which just makes any bee-related fatality that much harder to accept.
In the 1950s, down in Brazil, a scientist named Warwick Estevam Kerr set out to produce what he wanted the most: a hybrid bee that would produce more honey. Meaning, more money, ka-ching.
Kerr was attempting to interbreed honeybees from Europe and the more aggressive bees found in South Africa.
Big mistake. In October 1957, a visiting beekeeper accidentally released 26 swarms, and the rest, as they say, is history. The so-called Killer Bees spread across South America, Central America, Mexico, and in the fall of 1990, landed on this side of the Rio Grande.
Africanized Bees
Like anything, we don’t think much of Killer Bees/Africanized Bees until we hear of an attack story, or even worse, a fatality caused by a Killer Bee attack. Then, if it’s just someone out walking a dog, and they’re attacked, or someone mowing their lawn, some of us think, it could have been us.
So what can we do to stay safe even though the guy in the next lane texting while doing 75, drinking a Red Bull, may pose the bigger threat than a Killer Bee?
Here are some of the tips and info about the Africanized Honey Bees, courtesy of AI. If you’re really serious, or concerned, about what dangers these bees may pose, please get online or go to the library and do your own deep dive.
Living to an old age is a blessing. Dying from a bee attack is a waste of years, and in most cases, can be avoided.
Habits of AHB
• Less fussy about choosing a home, may be closer to ground, loves water meters, abandoned bee hives
• Swarm and abscond more readily
• More aggressive and more defensive
What Can Cause AHB Reactions
• Vibration of equipment — tractor, mower, weed eater, chain saws
• Pedestrian activity close to hive — does not have to touch hive
• Frantic animals can provoke bees
• Loud noises
Prevent Stinging Incidents
• Bee proof your home — seal and caulk all cracks and small holes in siding, eaves, corners
• Clean up all yard debris and abandoned equipment
• Screen over vents, chimneys, large openings
• Patrol area before mowing or yard work. Colonies can move during the day while you are at work.
• Teach children awareness of their surroundings
What to do if Attacked
A–Alert others in the area
C–Cover head and face, do not block vision
E–Exit get into car or house immediately, do not stop to find bee colony, do not waste time
• Remain calm — keep presence of mind if operating equipment or machinery
• Dial 911 for serious incidents
• If allergic to bee stings, carry an Epi-Pen as prescribed by personal physician
• Remove stingers by scraping with knife or fingernail