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Why Are Africanized Honey Bees So Aggressive? | Tucson Bee Control Experts

Why Are Africanized Honey Bees So Aggressive? | Tucson Bee Control Experts

The Africanized honeybee is well known for its aggression, but this bee is also one of the most successful types of bee. For example, the Africanized honeybee does far better in tropical climates than the European Honeybee, and the Africanized honeybee has been seen avoiding a certain type of mite that is deadly to most other types of bees. But why are Africanized Honeybees so aggressive? Is it a genetic trait?

Typically, aggressive behavior in insects is observed at the colony level, and not the individual level. A professor from the University of California at San Diego, James Nieh, is used to studying insects at an individual level, unlike most of his colleagues. Nieh observes the biting and/or stinging response of bees, and other aggressive behaviors. So studies are being done that will determine how European and Africanized Honey Bees differ in their aggressive behavior. Nieh said that at some point in the future, scientists will be aware of, and able to remove, genetic markers for aggression in bees.

Have you ever been forced to run from a colony of bees?

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