killer bees
Deadly buzzing insects
Killer bees are Africanized honeybees—a hybrid strain known for aggressive defensive behavior.
Unlike European honeybees, they attack in large swarms when disturbed and pursue threats over long distances.
The name reflects media coverage of their northward spread from Brazil since the 1950s: Killer bees have reached Texas.
The term is sometimes used figuratively for relentlessly aggressive people or things.
Thing of mixed parentage
- AfricanizedCrossbred with African species
- crossbreedMixed-lineage organism
- geneticsScience of hereditary transmission
- queenMost powerful chess piece
drone · worker · colony · hive · brood · pheromones · mating · breeding
Crossbred with African species
- attackAggressive act against another
- swarmMass of moving insects
- stingSharp wound from insect
- defensiveProtective or easily threatened
territorial · chase · fierce · vicious · provoked · enraged · relentless · pursuit
To distribute widely
- migrationMovement to new territory
- colonizationForeign territorial takeover
- displacementRemoval from usual location
- northwardToward the top
Texas · Arizona · California · Brazil · introduced · escaped · 1957 · feral
Injected animal poison
- fatalCausing death or ruin
- deadlyAble to cause expiration
- lethalCausing or capable of death
- hazardSource of potential harm
risk · anaphylaxis · allergic reaction · emergency · hospitalization · death · toxicity · pain
hybrid
Thing of mixed parentage
- AfricanizedCrossbred with African species
- crossbreedMixed-lineage organism
- geneticsScience of hereditary transmission
queen · drone · worker · colony · hive · brood · pheromones · mating · breeding · pollination
Africanized
Crossbred with African species
defensive · territorial · chase · fierce · vicious · provoked · enraged · relentless · pursuit · hypersensitive
spread
To distribute widely
- migrationMovement to new territory
- colonizationForeign territorial takeover
- displacementRemoval from usual location
northward · Texas · Arizona · California · Brazil · introduced · escaped · 1957 · feral · established
venom
Injected animal poison
hazard · risk · anaphylaxis · allergic reaction · emergency · hospitalization · death · toxicity · pain · swelling
buzzing
Low vibrating hum
absconding · thousands · overwhelming · engulf · surround · airborne · dense · darkening · loud · vibration
- beesbumblebee, honeybees, bumblebees, drones, Melitta
- Dangerous Creaturessharks, lions, tigers, crocodiles, bears
- wildlife dangershark attack, bear attack, lion attack, tiger attack, crocodile attack
- Hymenopterawasps, ants, hornets, sawflies, honeybees
- invasive speciesinvasive species, lionfish, emerald ash borer, noxious weeds, kudzu
- social insectsworkers, colony, queen, nest, brood
killer beesbutterflies
Fluttering insects or nervousness
beneficial insects · bumblebees · mason bees · solitary bees · ladybugs
bee, killing, killer, killed, beehive, bees, kills, beeswax, overkill