Killer Bees

Everyone is afraid of something. Some people are scared of dogs or cats, and some are afraid of darkness. Some others are scared of insects or spiders. This kind of fear is called a phobia. A phobia is a very strong irrational fear or hatred of something. However, the fear of bees can sometimes be very justified. People living in Brazil are afraid of killer bees. Have you heard of killer bees? These bees are very dangerous, so people are right to be afraid of them. When killer bees attack people, they attack in great numbers and often seriously hurt or kill people. Four hundred killer bee stings can kill a person. A total of 8,000 bee stings is not unusual for a killer bee attack. In fact, a student in Costa Rica took 10,000 stings and died. Often, the bees attack for no reason. They may attack because of a strong smell that is good or bad or because a person is wearing darkcoloured clothes, has dark hair or is wearing some kind of shiny jewellery. Killer bees originated in Brazil. A scientist in Sao Paulo wanted to keep bees in order to make more honey, so he put forty-six African bees in with some Brazilian bees. The bees started to breed and made a new kind of bee. However, the new bees were a mistake. They didn’t want to make more honey; they wanted to attack. Then, by accident, twenty-six African bees escaped and bred with the Brazilian bees outside.

Scientists could not control the problem. The bees spread and went from Brazil to Venezuela and then to Central America. Now they are in North America. They travel about 630 kilometres a year. Each group of bees, or colony, grows to four times its original size in a year. This means that there will be one million new colonies in five years. What can you do if you see killer bees coming toward you? The first thing you can do is run as fast as you can. Killer bees move fast and will follow you for up to two kilometres. Then you must go into the nearest house or building. Do not jump into water. The bees will wait for you to come out of the water. Killer bees will try to attack the head or the face, so cover your head with a handkerchief or a coat. You may even take off your shirt to cover your head. Stings to your chest and back are not as dangerous as stings to your head and face. However, if the bees sting you many times, you must get medical attention immediately. How are killer bees different from normal honeybees? Killer bees are a little smaller than regular bees, but only an expert can tell the difference. Killer bees get angry more quickly and attack more often than honeybees. Killer bees attack and sting in great numbers. Like honeybees, each killer bee can sting only once, and the female bee dies after it stings. Killer bees have killed about 1,000 people and over 100,000 cows in America. In the United States alone, thirty people have died from killer bee stings since 2013. From Texas, the bees moved to Nevada, New Mexico, Arizona and then Southern California. Where will they go next?