In a message dated 5/11/00 1:29:14 PM, [log in to unmask] writes:

<< After AHB arrived, their reports shot up to several thousand per year >>

That is a dramatic change in the behavior of the feral bee population. Are
you aware if any testing was done to confirm that those colonies were
Africanized?

Dr. Wenner,
   Thank you for providing the research observations. Survival on an island
with limited nesting opportunities could have forced the European bees to
adapt to whatever cavity presented itself. Have you made observations of
Africanized honeybees, and whether they are any more likely to nest in the
ground than the European bees?

   It might not be enough to draw a conclusion with scientific certainty—and
it sounds like exceptions like Aaron's Irish grave-dwelling colony exist—but
in regards to new AHB incursions around the United States, bees that go to
ground could be a behavioral marker for Africanization, and, if this is
accurate, pest control personnel and beekeepers should react accordingly.
   In regards to the article in the Los Angeles Times, it seems that the "Bee
Team" may have been exterminating an Africanized hive after all. However, I
still found the tone objectionable and the method of removal unnecessarily
hazardous. Dr. Wenner, being located in Southern California, can you offer
any other remarks on how communities are responding to the AHBs. Didn't you
report awhile back that Santa Barbara has a beekeeping ban, and have any more
beekeeping bans been enacted?