Honey Bees: Not Just a Mild-Mannered Yard Pest

Honey bees aren’t especially aggressive: in fact, watching the big fat bumble doter around your yard may even cause some form of fondness to form. Don’t let it: honey bees can be extremely dangerous in the right circumstances.

For example, honey bee stings often cause a severe allergic reaction in many people. These reactions can cause the throat to swell up and the body to break out in hives. For some, it can even cause death if not treated quickly enough.

Symptoms of a honey bee sting include:

• Immediate pain
• Throbbing pain lasting several minutes
• A burning sensation at the sting point
• Swelling and painful bruises

Treating a honey bee sting requires pulling out the stinger (not easy, given the natural barb of the stinger) and immediately treating all pain symptoms. Most over-the-counter medications should work just fine, though allergic reactions need to be treated with an EPI pen to curb the immediate danger before taking them to a hospital.

And while most honey bees are pretty chill and only attack when provoked, some species are more aggressive than others. The infamous Africanized honey bee (otherwise known as the killer bee) will send out its entire hive at the slightest provocation. Even for a non-allergic person, that many stings can be dangerous or fatal.

The biggest threat that comes from honey bees is their relatively positive perception: yes, they are necessary to pollinate flowers and are relatively benign. But they will attack when provoked, something too many people find out the hard way.

So if your home is infested with honey bees (such as a nest in the roof), it’s time to call a professional pest control expert to keep you and your family safe from harm.