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Killer bees Facts

Killer bees Facts
Killer bee is a type of bee created in laboratory in Brazil by mixing European honeybee with African bee. They are also known as Africanized bees. Scientists wanted to create a bee that will produce more honey, but unfortunately they created less effective and highly aggressive species. After escaping from the laboratory, newly created bee began conquering bee hives of Mexican and American honeybees. Killer bee can be found in Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Texas and California.
Interesting Killer bees Facts:
Killer bees are not huge insects. They are only ¾ inches long, just like regular bees.
Killer bees look like typical European bees. They have brown, fuzzy body, covered in black stripes. Only experts are able to distinguish these two species after closer examination.
Killer bees have four pairs of wings, but they are not expert flyers. However, they are able to chase their victims at least for a quarter of the mile.
Killer bees live in large colonies that include up to 80 000 members.
Killer bees are known by their bad temper - they can be easily provoked. Perfume, piece of shiny jewelry, dark cloths and loud sounds can agitate killer bees and initiate attack.
Killer bees produce venom that is as strong as the venom produced by European bees. However, killer bees always attack in a group, which is why they are so dangerous. People attacked by killer bees suffer numerous stings and may experience fatal allergic reaction.
Stinger of killer bee looks the same like the stinger of European bee, but it stings faster (in just three seconds).
After stinging its prey, killer bee releases the chemical that smells like ripe banana. That chemical alerts other members of the colony and triggers collective attack.
Killer bee remains agitated 24 hours after the attack.
From the moment of their creation, killer bees induced around 1000 deaths.
Best advice to anyone attacked by a killer bee is to run following the straight path for at least quarter of a mile. Hiding in the water will not stop the killer bees from attacking the victim. Killer bees will simply wait above the surface of the water for the person to appear.
Killer bees usually attack outdoors, but there have been some cases where they attacked people at their homes.
Killer bees create nests in the holes in the ground. Destruction of their nests triggers anger and people should avoid doing that.
Although killer bees are created with a goal to produce more honey, they actually produce 5 time less honey than European bees.
Lifespan of killer bees depends on their type: queens have the longest lifespan, from one to three years. Worker bees live around one month, while drones usually live from 5 to 10 weeks.


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