Hello Bee Friends & Gary,
 
In a message dated 01/31/99 5:47:29 AM Eastern Standard Time, [log in to unmask]
(Gary C. Lewis) writes:
<< Hello Ben,
    I was watching a program last night (Friday) on the (Discovery
 Channel) about the AHB They said that in South America about 40 people a
 year are killed by the AHB. The same number of people that die each year
 in the United States due to stings from our honey bees. >>
 
Gary
I can't imagine Forty (40) people "a year," dying from "OUR HONEYBEES" in the
USA.  Where do these stat's come from??  I might believe one or two deaths
from honeybees.  Could the rest be wasp stings and/or spider bites?
 
I could add in 1995 there was a hive that stung me over a hundred times on the
back of my neck.  I was in full bee suit w/zipper vale & elastic cuffs.  The
bees pulled themselves through the venting on the helmet.  I could not retreat
to the house because I was covered with hundreds of bees.  I had to ask my
wife to put on the spare bee suit, taping up the vents on her helmet before
she came outside and taped my helmet.  All this just to close-up the hive.
The bees from that hive attacked the neighbors several hundred feet away the
next day.  And for two days whenever we left the house, we and the dogs were
under attack.  I moved the hive out into the woods "at night" and while
wearing two bee suits I requeened it a week later.  I usually don't wear
protective clothing, just shorts and tee-shirt; tee-shirt optional.  These
mean/nasty Bees also had three times the honey stores as the rest of my hives.
 
John
CT