# Bee Stinger Removal Instructions For Schools



## DamSutt1986 (May 26, 2012)

Wow! That is awesome looking! I can't really attest to the accuracy of the process, I haven't been stung that much and just kind of ignore them =X Looks very very good though!


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## ddb123 (Jun 20, 2012)

Looks great. I can attest that leaving the stinger in definitely makes it worse!


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## deknow (Jul 17, 2006)

Scrapimg the stinger is what seems.to be recommended most often.....but I seem to have less.irritatation if I just pinch the stinger and pull it straight out. In part, the stinger comes.out faster as there is no need to open a wallet and take out a credit card, but I don't thin that is all of it. I think there is something that works better when the sting comes.straight out. Just my own experience.

Deknow


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

I don't know. Seems to be a nice well built advertisement for your business, but not necassarily what I would consider accurate or necassary. But, I am a beekeeper, not someone who goes most of their life not getting stung. Just the opposite.

So, looking at things from the point of view of someone getting stung or the pov of a Teacher or School Nurse whose Student has been stung, I can see some use for these recommendations, even though I find them Folk Loreish.

I think a better recommendation to a reaction to a Honeybee sting would be to recommend scraping the stinger off with ones thumb nail. It's quicker. One wants to minimize the venom getting into the skin. By the time one gets a plastic card from their wallet all of the venom is below the skin surface. Besides, how many youngsters have a credit card handy?

A cold pack probably does help the person stung to feel better, emotionally. I don't see why washing is necassary. But it does make one think they are doing something. Which may be of value.

The list of things to apply to the stung area is totally unnecassary and messy in many cases. Unless the Honey is taken internally.

I was disappointed to see you removing dead/unoccupied comb. You do do removals of live colonies, don't you? Or do you kill them before removal?


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## Katharina (May 2, 2011)

In addition to swiping out the stinger, I always tell people to take a double dose of liquid antihistamine within 30 minutes. You can also apply it directly to the bite site, but it is better to get the type designed to be used on the skin since it gets better absorbed. If they don't have it use toothpaste on the skin, which includes baking soda. Just adding these two steps will reduce the reaction a lot. 
Cleaning the sting site is useless, because it is not the bacteria on the skin, but what has been injected that causes trouble. You wont get the injected stuff with washing.


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## camprn (Feb 16, 2012)

Most often if I see a student who has been stung, there is no stinger present. The reason for washing is there is a risk of secondary (usually staph) infection, which actually happens more often than one would think. If it is a simple local reaction I usually apply ammonia and/or calagel, a viscous diphenhydramine and this usually takes care of the stinging sensation and the swelling pretty quickly.


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## Acebird (Mar 17, 2011)

I think a finger nail is probably the best tool to use because it is most available but how do you teach a child how to do it. Maybe a guy like Mark could take a sting and someone can video it to show the kids.

I know the world has gone germaphobe with the wash and sterilize everything. I would put a dab of honey on it and tell the kid he has to wait 5 minutes before he/she can lick it off. I really want to know how many kids get stung by honeybees.


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## Daniel Y (Sep 12, 2011)

On the issue of how to remove the stinger. These are the associated issues at least how they have been taught to me.
1. the faster the stinger is removed the less effect the sting has. The bee leaves the stinger with the venom sac attached in the skin. the Venom sac continues to pulse pumping additional venom into the skin. this a stinger that is left longer results in more venom.
2. I have always been told to remove the stinger with the finger nail in a scratching an itch motion. the issue here is that if you pinch the venom sac you once again force all the venom into the skin.
3. the list of recommended remedies to a sting is pretty much limitless. Most do not work and those that do seem to work to varying degrees on different people. I believe it is more effective to simply teach that bee stings although painful at first, pass far more quickly than other insect stings. It is true although that putting something on it often causes a person to experience relief. So why not. My wife swears that baking some and tobacco work. and will think you are trying kill her if you don't provide it.

I do think the page is well done. Bee removal video needs to be more of a rescue the bees type of thing rather than an undramatic cove of dead and harmless bees. Most exciting part of it is the cutting away of the roof sheathing. Anti climatic at best. not even an impressive amount of wax. I say that in a poking you in the ribs sort of fashion. Although it is true that a bee removal video could be far more dramatic and attention grabbing. We wanna see people get stung. At least lead the viewer to think they might get some satisfaction. You know swarms of bees clinging on every inch of your bee suit. Near misses as someone almost stumbles and falls off the roof. a little bit of a spat between the beekeepers would sell a lot of copies. One beekeeper tossing the other off the roof would cause it to go viral.

Seriously the video does have a pretty big let down factor to it you might want to seriously think about getting a better one made if you want to keep a one on your page.


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## deknow (Jul 17, 2006)

If you are having or have a history of bad reactions (shy of any real health concerns) , taking an antihistimine is fine......but its a simple.bee sting for most people....I'm not sure it is wise or even helpful to tell people to.take an.antihistimine.as.a.matter.of.course.

Deknow


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## deknow (Jul 17, 2006)

I understand that in theory you don't want to pinch the sac, but in practice, I find the skin is more irritated if I scrape the stinger out than if I pinch and pull. 

Deknow


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## c10250 (Feb 3, 2009)

It is a complete fallacy that a bee sting should be remove by scraping. You are perpetuating an old wives tale. At least one study has shown that it doesn't matter how you remove the stinger. Scraping, pulling, . . . it doesn't matter. What matters is HOW FAST you remove the stinger. Just google it. . . . you'll find study after study that says it absolutely doesn't matter how you remove the stinger. When will this myth die??? By telling people they should scrape a bee sting, you are perpetuating a wives tale.

Holy cow, for someone who gets stung by a bee to have to go into their wallet and remove a credit card (OK, you can use your fingernail, but the graphic doesn't show that) to remove a bee sting is hurting them more than it's helping them. By publishing this, you are doing a disservice.


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## Daniel Y (Sep 12, 2011)

To pinch or not to pinch

copied and pasted from http://www.ars.usda.gov/Research/docs.htm?docid=11067

If stung by a honey bee, the first thing you should do is remove the stinger. The end of a sting is barbed and will remain stuck in the skin even if the bee is removed. *Muscles in the stinger allow it to continue pumping venom into the victim, even if it is no longer connected to the bee, for up to a minute or until the stinger is removed*. The sooner the stinger is removed, the less venom will enter the wound. Honey bees are able to sting only once and eventually die after they have released their stinger.
How to remove the stinger:
*Do not pull the stinger out with your fingers or tweezers because this will squeeze out more venom.*
scrape 1, pinch 0, quickly 1

From
http://firstaid.about.com/od/heatcoldexposure/ht/07_bee_sting.htm
Remove any stingers immediately! No need to scrape off bee stingers, just remove them. It's OK to pull stingers out with your fingers, brush them off or get them out any way you can. The longer bee stingers are allowed to remain in the body, the more severe the reaction will be.

scrape 1, pinch 1, quickly 2

From http://www.medicinenet.com/bee_sting_treatment/views.htm
Determine if the stinger is still present (look for a small black dot at the sting site) and remove it immediately if is visible in the wound. Many doctors recommend using a hard object like a credit card or blunt knife to swipe over the area and remove the stinger. The honey bee venom sack, which remains in the skin of the victim, can take 2-3 minutes to release all of its venom, so prompt removal of the stinger can reduce the severity of the sting.

scrape 2, pinch 1, quickly 3

From http://www.wikihow.com/Treat-a-Bee-Sting
Remove the stinger. (Only honey bees leave the stinger and poison gland; yellow jackets, wasps, and hornets do not.) Scrape it out gently with a fingernail or edge of a credit card. Don't squeeze the sac or pull on the stinger. Act swiftly and stop the stinger from pumping venom into the skin.

scrape 3, pinch 1, quickly 4

From http://www.extension.org/pages/44098/how-do-i-remove-a-honey-bee-stinger
The honey bee stinger penetrates the skin and imbeds itself because the sting shaft is barbed. The poison sack and attached muscles continue to pump venom into the skin after the bee has departed. The sting and poison sack should be removed by scraping with a thumbnail or other straightedge as soon as possible to reduce the amount of venom being injected. Do not use tweezers because pressure on the poison sack releases more poison into the victim.

scrape 4, pinch 1, quickly 5

From http://www.ehow.com/how_4550778_remove-bee-stinger.html
Remove the bee stinger immediately. Many people say it is unsafe to pull the stinger out with your fingers or tweezers. A study at UCR Entomology came to the conclusion that there was no great difference in reactions, whether you pull the stinger out or scrape it off. The most important thing to do is remove the stinger as quickly as possible. The longer a stinger is left in the skin, the more adverse the reaction will be.

Read more: How to Remove a Bee Stinger | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_4550778_remove-bee-stinger.html#ixzz1yfsBZVtP

scrape 4, pinch 2, quickly 6

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bee_sting
The first step in treatment following a bee sting is removal of the stinger itself. The stinger should be removed as quickly as possible without regard to method: studies have shown the amount of venom delivered does not differ whether the sting is pinched or scraped off and even a delay of a few seconds leads to more venom being injected

scrape 4, pinch 3, quickly 7
Video from http://www.woodsmonkey.com/index.ph...-a-bee-sting&catid=44:how-to-videos&Itemid=68
Scrape 5, pinch 3 quickly 7

From http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-best-way-to-treat-a-bee-sting.htm

The first thing to do to treat a bee sting is to locate and remove the bee’s stinger from the skin. This is very important, because the stinger contains venom that will continue to be released, causing the bee sting to worsen. When the stinger is located, it should be scraped off horizontally with a clean finger nail or plastic card. If this doesn’t work, you can treat a bee sting by removing the stinger with tweezers. Pinch the area around the bee sting so that the stinger rises above the surface of the skin and pull it out with the tweezers.

I am giving this to the no pinch side because of the details in how to remove the stinger with tweezers. at first it appears to be a claim that pinching does not matter but in fact appears to be a method to use tweezers yet avoid pinching the venom sac.

Scrape 6, pinch 3, quickly 8

From http://beespotter.mste.illinois.edu/topics/stings/
A honey bee can sting only once and the stinger with the venom sac is detached from the bee’s body. The venom sac continues to pump venom through the sting into the wound. This is why it is important to remove the stinger as quickly as possible to decrease the dose of venom injected. There are many different ideas as to how to remove the stinger to limit the amount of venom received but it is common practice to scrape off the stinger instead of pulling it out because squeezing the sac to pull it out might push the remaining venom into the wound. 

Scrape 7, pinch 3, quickly 9

And the list of links goes on. It appears pretty obvious to me that there are two schools of thought on the issue but that the pinch doesn't matter issue is hardly the most common advise found. In fact quite the opposite. if you actually pay attention you will find that one study says it does not matter yet another study at a University says it does. The only unanimous issue is to remove the stinger quickly.


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## JRG13 (May 11, 2012)

Any reference on how long it takes for the stinger to empty itself? I only says this since it's not very big and I can see it emptying itself in a few seconds, therefore pulling it by pinching it wouldn't do any more harm than looking for something to scrape it out which the venom sac has emptied already anyway.


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## c10250 (Feb 3, 2009)

You will be able to find all kinds of "recommendations" on how to remove a stinger. Some of those recommendations come from very reputable sites. However, I have yet to see a _*study*_ or an experiment done by a reputable source that states that it matters how you remove a stinger. The few experiments I have seen all come to the same conclusions . . . it doesn't matter.

Now, for some real science --

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb6629/is_n4_v20/ai_n28675013/

There is a _*real study*_, not a perpetuation of myth.

Some interesting points from the _*study*_:

"three American entomologists, reporting in the August 3 issue of the British medical journal Lancet, refutes the conventional wisdom espoused ever since a bee first deposited its stinger (or sting, as the experts call it) in an unfortunate human."

"Finally, Visscher and Vetter compared two methods of sting removal - the scraping technique and the "quick grab" - to see if there was difference in welt size, given the same time for removal. Each allowed himself to be stung 20 times, _*with no difference in welt size*_. This was important to determine, because other research had shown that _*venom is pumped out so quickly that almost instantaneous removal is necessary to make a difference*_."

From the medical journal itself - http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(96)01367-0/abstract

"Weal size, and thus envenomisation, increased as the time from stinging to removal of the sting increased, even within a few seconds. There was no difference in response between stings scraped or pinched. . . ."

Stop perpetuating the wives tale that scraping a stinger is best. Quick removal is best. It makes no difference how you get it out . . . _*and for God's sake, stop showing pictures of people getting a stinger out with a credit card!*_


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## Daniel Y (Sep 12, 2011)

c10250,
So is that like saying any opinion or finding that disagrees with you is not credible? What a convenient method of always being right. You don't have to actually know anything and mess with all that learning stuff. just form an opinion and be right.

How about this. post links to all there credible studies you know about. Allow me to see for myself all those qualified researchers that are in agreement with you. I searched and didn't find it so.
I actually did a search for "studies on honey bee stings" I did not spend a lot of time lookign at them because frankly this issue is becoming boring. Btu I foudn only two links that even hold promise of including information on method of stinger removal being a factor at all. those two studies are
"Risk assessment in determining systemic reactivity to honeybee stings in beekeepers."
"Acute polyradiculoneuropathy following honey bee sting"

I cannot say that either mention method of removal at all as an issue. Otherwise the list of links is a repeat of my above post.

So I made a search that might be a little more specific.
"studies on honey bee stinger removal"
Out of all the links I eventually found this. at

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8709689
BACKGROUND:

Conventional advice on immediate treatment of honey-bee stings has emphasised that the sting should be scraped off, never pinched. The morphology of the sting suggested little basis for this advice, which is likely to slow down removal of the sting.
METHODS:

The response to honey-bee stings was assayed with a measurement of the size of the resulting weal. Injection of known quantities of venom showed that this measurement is a good indicator of envenomisation.
FINDINGS:

Weal size, and thus envenomisation, increased as the time from stinging to removal of the sting increased, even within a few seconds. There was no difference in response between stings scraped or pinched off after 2 s.
INTERPRETATION:

These data suggest that advice to patients on the immediate treatment of bee stings should emphasis quick removal, without concern for the method of removal.

Now although I have done this fairly quickly I think it is a more than fair and thorough investigation of your claim of "Study after Study". and I hardly find that true. It required three separate searches and looking over dozens and possibly well over a hundred links to find even one that fairly well supports your comments.

I also do not agree with the assessment the research reached. I would agree that the experiment indicates that here is no difference if the stinger is removed in 2 seconds or less. But there is no indication from even this study that there is no difference if the stingier remains in the skin for more than 2 seconds.

As far as how long the venom sac will continue to pump. from the above quotes the time range is between one and three minutes.


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## c10250 (Feb 3, 2009)

Daniel, you are correct. Thanks. Maybe a lot of articles cite the same study. Here's a great .pdf on it:

"*Removing bee stings: speed matters, method
doesn't.*

http://angeles.sierraclub.org/ocss/pdf/removing_bee_stings.pdf

My point is that a study is different from just citing some recommendation. I think that anyone who is going to publish a paper and educate school children should at least do some research and not just perpetuate what someone else states.

If you find research that states that how you remove a sting matters, then by all means, it should be given more weight than some web site just recommending how to remove a stinger.

I just cringe at a credit card being used to remove a bee sting. By that point, all the venom is injected, and it isn't going to matter how you remove it.

Although not a study, this .pdf states my opinion on the matter - First Aid Myths

http://www.bsa344.com/Wilderness Survival Myths.pdf

Scraping Off a Bee Stinger
This is the granddaddy of all first aid myths. Safety first! Get away from the bee. Bees release a scent when in danger to attract other bees. If you're still around when reinforcements get there, they'll sting you. Remove any stingers immediately! No need to scrape off bee stingers, just remove them. It's OK to pull stingers out with your fingers. The longer bee stingers are allowed to remain in the body, the more severe the reaction will be. How fast you remove the stinger is much more important than how you remove it. Grab it, brush it, flick it -- it doesn't matter -- just don't spend time digging through your wallet for a Visa card to scrape it off.


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## Daniel Y (Sep 12, 2011)

I disagree with the credit card being shown. Do I think that someone woudl run around with a stinger in there arm for three minutes trying to find a credit card? Yes I do. When they first introduced 911 as the emergency number to call they called it nine eleven. they had to change that because during an emergency people got confused when they could not find eleven on there telephone. and that is not a joke.
So I am in complete agreement about the credit card point. I also agree that getting the stinger out no matter how it is done is better than farting around about some specific method. In fact I was just shown to scratch at it. No concern at a ll about smashing it breaking it off or anything else. the issue as I was told is get rid of that venom sac. In that I think we are in complete agreement. Maybe the only point we might be on opposite sides of the fence on woudl be pinching the venom sac. I was told not to. Found it recommended in several places not to. found it stated specifically it dos not matter on several also. I also think that in actually practice I may have it in my head to not squeeze the venom sac. but I don't waste a moment really worrying about it. I just swipe the stinger away. shake my sore spot for a bit. maybe apply a penny for a moment and wait for the numbness to settle in. I also believe nothing makes more of a difference than getting the stinger out quick.

With that I would say it is probably better if the card showing school children what to do about a bees sting showed two or three ways of ding it and not showing any specific tool such as a card. Scrape it out with a fingernail for example. pinch it off with a your fingers. just rub it away with your hand. But above all get rid of it. And you have about 2 seconds to do so or the sting can and most likely will be worse.

I also don't like the suggestion that people use a pocket knife. Sorry but I was an EMT for a while. I have sen just how unreasonable people can get when they get nervous or worked up. Now I don't think the average beekeeper is going to get in any panic about a sting. but many people do and I can see people actually cutting themselves in the panic trying to scrape a bees stinger off. People do some real brain totally shut off things.


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## ProPacific (Jul 26, 2010)

sqkcrk said:


> I was disappointed to see you removing dead/unoccupied comb. You do do removals of live colonies, don't you? Or do you kill them before removal?


The client requested the removal of the unoccupied honeycomb because she was having reoccuring problems of bees in the same area. We do offer live removal services and transport the colonies to an apiary near an orange grove.


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## ProPacific (Jul 26, 2010)

Thanks everybody for your opinions. We will take some of your suggestions into consideration for our revised graphic. We agree that removing the stinger immediately regardless of the method is priority. However, "step 1" claims to remove the stinger immediately with any flat surface (finger nail, credit card, etc.) The credit card method was the only "flat surface" that was illustrated. But perhaps we will change the text or image to emphasize a fingernail since this is probably more readily available than a card.


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## Acebird (Mar 17, 2011)

ProPacific said:


> The client requested the removal of the unoccupied honeycomb because she was having reoccuring problems of bees in the same area.


Is it common to go through the roof structure rather than come from underneath? Probably not an issue in your area but I wouldn't want someone tearing up my roof. That is asking for leaks.


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## ProPacific (Jul 26, 2010)

Acebird said:


> Is it common to go through the roof structure rather than come from underneath? Probably not an issue in your area but I wouldn't want someone tearing up my roof. That is asking for leaks.


It's really up to the homeowner to decide if they want to access the honeycomb from the inside and cut into the drywall or go through the roof. Sometimes its just more logical to go through the roof. But we do have many people with the mentality of "no way you're cutting into my roof". 

All work is guaranteed and repairs are sealed and the original materials are used. Haven't had any customers complain about leaks.


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## Acebird (Mar 17, 2011)

You don't have ice jams and 4 ft of snow to contend with. Almost any Yo Yo can patch up drywall. I know it can be more convenient to do the cut out from above but I wouldn't want it done to my house.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

Acebird said:


> Is it common to go through the roof structure rather than come from underneath?


I, and the rest of the UU Bee Team, will be going thru the roof to get to some bees tomorrow. I sure hope that's where they are.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

ProPacific said:


> The client requested the removal of the unoccupied honeycomb because she was having reoccuring problems of bees in the same area. We do offer live removal services and transport the colonies to an apiary near an orange grove.


That makes sense. But don't you have videos which better illustrate what you do? Deal w/ live honeybee colonies.


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## lazy shooter (Jun 3, 2011)

This thread reminds me that I need to get back on my wheel improvement project.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

You're not finished w/ that yet?


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## ProPacific (Jul 26, 2010)

sqkcrk said:


> But don't you have videos which better illustrate what you do? Deal w/ live honeybee colonies.


We have just completed a series of live removal videos. I will sort through them soon and see what I can find. Thanks!


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## ddb123 (Jun 20, 2012)

Figured I would dig up this old thread.

In the past two days, I have been stung twice. Once on my face (I have a thick beard) and once on the back of my head. I usually wear a veil, but both of these instances were just walking near the hive, and I've never had the slightest trouble in the past. Neither really hurt, but did give a headache. It took probably 10 minutes to get the stinger out of my face, then today I had a 10 minute drive to have my mom remove the stinger from the back of my head. So here's the question: what if one of these times a bee gets into my veil and stings my face or top or back of my head again, and I can't find the stinger to get it out. Will it just come out on its own eventually? Should I bother a neighbor to help me out? Should I just wash my hair and get on with life?

Thanks!


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## Acebird (Mar 17, 2011)

ddb123 said:


> Will it just come out on its own eventually?


It will either come out or dissolve. The concern would be infection as with any piercing. A common antiseptic should keep you safe.


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## ddb123 (Jun 20, 2012)

Thanks!


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## Daniel Y (Sep 12, 2011)

I had a stinger break off in my hand last summer. Could very well be that many have I just happened to be able to see this one. it never caused a problem. As Ace said I woudl be most concerned about an infection just as you might get form a splinter. Otherwise it took care of itself and thee was no pain involved like a splinter woudl cause. Of course not removing the stinger is going to cause the most sever sting due to the venom sac being able to deliver it's full dose.

I have had my bees become more aggressive even approaching the hive after I did something that ticked them off. they remain that wait for several days. If I give them two or three days they forget who I am again and all is well. I am thinking that bees have some sort of memory, most likely of the odor of certain things that they took as a high level threat.

I recently did a cut out and after moving the hive home I could not go near that hive without a bees suit for three days. A dozen bees would come directly at me anytime I got within 10 feet of that hive. I can't really blame them. They had just gotten their home completely destroyed. They have since settled down and I can open the top of the hive and not get a single bee to take flight. So hopefully whatever has your bees riled up they will get over in the next couple of days. I woudl suggest you investigate to see if they are being raided by anything such as a skunk at night. a raccoon. or anything else pestering them. That is if you have no other reason you know of for them to be all worked up.


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