Lubbock, TX Bees

Pest Management Services of Lubbock, TX specializes in bee control.  The Honey bee is a beneficial insect that supports our food chain.  However, this bee can be very aggressive if the colony has become “Africanized”.  They can also cause problems when they use our structures to live in.

Bees (Order Hymenoptera)

There are many different opinions and ideas about "killer bees" around today. Many are wives tales or have been passed around long enough that the story has become 'fact'.

For clarification, scientists have concluded that:

• Honey Bees
  • Honey bees are not likely to sting when foraging for nectar and pollen in the back yard
  • Honey bees are not likely to sting when swarming (looking for a new home)
  • Honey bees are most docile when carrying out their daily chores
  • Honey bees are most likely to sting when their home (the hive) is threatened or they are accidentally crushed
  • Honey bees swarm (move in large numbers to establish new hives) in spring and fall and are less likely to be aggressive in those seasons
  • Honey bees sting to protect their hive but each bee can sting only once, and then it dies

Stings are usually not serious unless there are a large number of them, or you are systemically allergic to the venom.

• Africanized Bees
  • Africanized Honey Bees In 1957, honey bees (Apis mellifera scutellata) were imported from Africa to Brazil
  • African bees escaped and became feral (wild)
  • As feral African bees mated with EHBs they produced a hybrid called an "Africanized honey bee" (AHB)
  • AHBs look like European bees to the eye
  • They are, on average, slightly smaller than EHBs, but can only be separated by molecular techniques or morphometric computer analysis
  • Since 1990, only 8 fatalities in the US have been caused by honey bees, as compared to 78 killed by dogs.
  • The chances of being killed by honey bees are less than the chances of being hit by lightning
• Africanized honey bees
  • Africanized honey bees are less fussy in their choice of nesting sites: building nests in the ground, in tree cavities, in the walls of a home, and where ever they find a small hole through which to enter
  • Africanized honey bees will "abscond" (leave a location when conditions are not suitable) more often than European honey bees
  • No matter which type you have determined that you are dealing with, or if you need help making that decision, we can help with identification and control of the problem.

With many years of experience in not only bee-keeping, but in pest control as well, we are your choice when it comes to these feared and misunderstood insects. Call us at 806-794-4567 to see how we can solve your problem.

If a bee colony has adopted your home as their own, control measures are appropriate.

Contact Pest Management Services today at 806-794-4567 for all of your bee control needs.