Up to 80 percent of the entire wild bee population of South Florida has been hybridized by an aggressive African bee strain, experts say.
Experts said since the first reported sighting of African bees in Tampa, Fla., seven years ago, the insects have been slowly colonizing domestic bee colonies and reproducing at an alarming rate, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported Sunday.
The increase of Africanized bees in the area has already resulted in multiple bee attacks, including the death of a 51-year-old man last April. Robert Davis died in Okeechobee County after being stung more than 100 times by the hybrid bees.
Months later in Riviera Beach, Fla., a 70-year-old woman's dogs were killed in an October attack by the bees living in an area home.
Urban entomologist Bill Kern told the Sun-Sentinel the Africanized bees' reproductive rates and sensitive nature indicates similar attacks are likely to occur in the South Florida in the future.
"Something as simple as a squirrel running across the branch nearby — that can set them off," the University of Florida researcher said.
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