‘Killer’ Bees Pushing Rapidly Into Valley

A colony of Africanized honeybees has been found in Calabasas, prompting warnings Monday by county officials that the aggressive insects have probably spread throughout the San Fernando Valley.

The discovery of a hive of the so-called killer bees in an oak tree in Calabasas marks the farthest north the bees have been found in Los Angeles County since the first local sighting last fall in Lawndale.

County agricultural officials now believe the bees have colonized 40% of the region.

“They’re moving quite, quite rapidly into new areas,” said Robert Donley, deputy director of the county agriculture department. “Residents should be careful about being around colonies or even a swarm of bees.”

There have been no reported attacks in Los Angeles County, although the bees are much more aggressive than their European counterparts.

A gardener in San Bernardino was stung more than 90 times last year after startling a hive with a weed cutter. At least five people in the Southern United States have been killed by the bees, which attack in a swarming mass.

In the latest discovery, a gardener working March 5 near Park Ora and Park Helena in Calabasas discovered the bees flying in and out of an oak tree at a private home, according to county agriculture officials.

The bees were killed as a precaution. State officials using a DNA test confirmed last week that the insects were Africanized honeybees.

So far, colonies or swarms of bees have been found in Commerce, Lynwood, Santa Fe Springs, El Segundo and Rancho Palos Verdes, as well as the communities of Del Aire and Lennox Park.

“What this tells us is that we probably have a number of other hives and swarms out there,” said Robert Saviskas, executive director of the Los Angeles County West Vector Control District.

The bees have also been found in Riverside County, but none in Orange County.

County officials urged residents to call county insect control staff to remove suspicious hives. But beehives inside walls or crawl spaces at private residences can be removed only by private exterminators.

Residents seeking more information on the bees can call the agriculture department’s county hotline: (800) BEE WARY. Those seeking to have the bees removed may also call the vector control district’s hotline: (800) 925-3800.