Africanized killer bee
The Africanized killer bee is a hybrid species created in 1956 through the intentional crossbreeding of the European honeybee and the African honeybee by Brazilian geneticist Dr. Warwick E. Kerr. The goal was to develop a bee that combined the docile nature of the European honeybee with the high honey production of the African honeybee. However, the resulting Africanized killer bees are known for their aggressive behavior, which can pose significant risks to humans.
These bees are not larger than common honeybees, typically measuring about 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) in length, and they have a similar appearance with black bodies and orange bands. They live in a caste system with a single queen, worker females, and drones, all working together to maintain the hive. While they produce honey effectively, the Africanized killer bee's temperament varies widely, often leading to unexpected aggression, especially when their hives are disturbed.
Since their introduction into the United States in the early 1990s, they have spread across several states, including Texas, New Mexico, California, and Arizona. It's important to understand both the ecological impact and the safety considerations surrounding these bees, especially in areas where they are prevalent.
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Africanized killer bee
The Africanized killer bee is a man-made cross between the European honeybee and the African honeybee. The intent of the cross was to combine the gentle nature of the European honeybee with the active honey-production of the African honeybee to produce the most honey by the nicest bee. The Africanized killer bee, however, can be one of the most aggressive insects in the world, although their temperment varies.
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Uniramia
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Apidae
Genus: Apis
Species: Mellifera scutellata
The Africanized killer bee was created in 1956 in Brazil by Dr. Warwick E. Kerr. Dr. Kerr was a doctor of genetics employed by the Brazilian government to create the ideal honey-producing bee. To accomplish this task, Dr. Kerr combined the aggressive, but highly-productive African honeybee, with the calm, gentle-natured European honeybee. Dr. Kerr knew that the African honeybee was very dangerous to humans because it would attack without being provoked, but he hoped the crossbreed would carry the gentle nature of the European honeybee and be able to produce large amounts of honey like the African honeybee.
Unfortunately, the results of the cross were not as Dr. Kerr had hoped. Soon after breeding it was obvious that the new bees had inherited both of the characteristics of the African honeybee. The new bees did produce twice as much honey as the European honeybees, but they were much more aggressive and dangerous than even their African parents.
At first Dr. Kerr hoped to contain the new, vicious twenty-six queen honeybees he had created, but a visiting beekeeper freed these queens. Soon, large swarms of bees were traveling through Brazil. These queens were mating with the European honeybees common to South America and were developing hives of Africanized killer bee as they traveled. For many years scientists observed the speed at which swarms of Africanized killer bees were traveling toward the United States. In October of 1990 a swarm of Africanized killer bees crossed into Texas and was trapped and killed. By 1993, swarms of Africanized killer bees could be found in Texas, New Mexico, California, and Arizona. In the twenty-first century, the bees can also be found in Nevada.
In lifestyle, the Africanized killer bee is no different from the common honeybee, the European honeybee. Each colony is led by one queen and all of the offspring in the hive are her young. The hive includes nonreproductive worker females, drones, or reproductive males, and young reproductive females. Young which develop from fertilized eggs become females, while young which develop from unfertilized eggs become males. Each young Africanized killer bee matures in about eight days.
Each of the different social positions within the hive are a different caste. Some bees are in the caste of nonreproductive female workers, while others are drones. This type of system is called a caste system. It is a system in which each individual within a colony is brought into the world to serve a certain purpose within a certain social position. The queen bee in each colony determines how many members belong to each caste.
Although the Africanized killer bee is a very dangerous bee, it is no larger than the honeybee. Growing to a length of about 1 inch (2.5 centimeters), the Africanized killer bee has a simple body structure. Like other honeybees, the Africanized killer bee workers have black bodies with orange bands. Each worker also has a stinger which injects venom, or poison, into anything the Africanized killer bee stings.
The Africanized killer bee is able to produce honey by a process in the worker bee's stomach. The worker bee's stomach turns nectar from flowers into a honey-like substance which is then regurgitated, or spit up, by the bee and put in a storage cell within the hive. The Africanized killer bee uses the honey to feed growing young bees.
The life span of the Africanized killer bee appears the same as the honeybee, but varies according to the bee's caste. The queen may live for up to seven years, while drones live only four to five weeks. Workers also have short life spans of only about two months.
Bibliography
“BugInfo - Africanized Bees.” Smithsonian Institution, www.si.edu/spotlight/buginfo/killbee. Accessed 15 Mar. 2024.
Cranshaw, Whitney. “Africanized Honeybee.” National Invasive Species Information Center (NISIC), www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/terrestrial/invertebrates/africanized-honeybee. Accessed 15 Mar. 2024.
Keck, Molly, and Dalton Ludwick. “Africanized Honey Bees.” Extension Entomology, 3 Dec. 2020, extensionentomology.tamu.edu/insects/africanized-honey-bees. Accessed 15 Mar. 2024.