Are honey bees dangerous?
In general honey bees are not dangerous.
While some people are allergic to honey bee venom,
stings from honey bees are far less common than wasp
stings. With one exception, honey bees are much less
aggressive than yellowjackets, and other social
wasps, with which they are often confused.
One strain of honey bees, however, does
exhibit extreme aggression when defending their
hive. This strain was introduced into South America
from bees collected in Africa. The aggressive strain
is called Africanized honey bee. Since the
introduction of this bee, Africanized honey bees
have moved north and are now found throughout the
southwestern US (see What
are Africanized Bees?).
The study of honey bee domestication and
biology, called apiculture, is a separate
branch of entomology. The importance of domesticated
honey bees as pollinators has elevated bees to this
position. No other single insect has been so
intensively studied.
Beekeeping as a
Business or Hobby
Honey
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