Bees, like dogs and horses, can sense fear, so if you are afraid of bees, the chances of being stung are greater. If you are bothered by bees, avoid swatting them. Walk quietly away into the wind with your head bowed and your face covered with your hands.
Bees don't smell fear. However, they detect fear pheromones released when an animal or human is afraid. Essentially, their olfactory system enables them to collect scents and establish their meaning. So, even though they don't smell fear directly, they have a keen sense of smell for perceived threats.
So while bees cannot necessarily “smell” fear, they do have a way of detecting it and communicating that fear with the hive! One way bees do this is by emitting a specific pheromone to the rest of the hive, which is a chemical that alerts the rest of the colony that there is a threat.
As long as you don't disturb them and give them some space, bees will pretty much leave you alone. They're even less interested in stinging you than you are in being stung, after all.
We swat bees to avoid painful stings, but do they feel the pain we inflict? A new study suggests they do, a possible clue that they and other insects have sentience—the ability to be aware of their feelings.
Bees follow you because Sweat is sweet to bees.
Some bees are attracted to human sweat. Sounds gross, but it's true. These bees are usually metallic in color and rather small and harder to notice than their yellow and black counterparts. These bees can sting but aren't known for being aggressive towards humans.
If you look or smell like a flower, you are more likely to attract the attention of a bee. They love the smell of some sunscreens, shampoos, perfumes and aftershaves. They also love flowery prints and shiny jewelry and buckles. That's why beekeepers wear white, without accessories.
Don't panic if you encounter a stationary swarm of bees. The bees will sting only if threatened. But keep your distance. Moving swarms can pose a higher sting risk, and should be avoided.
So, RUN! And when you run Keep Running ! Africanized honey bees have been known to follow people for more than a quarter mile. Any covering for your body, and especially for your head and face will help you escape.
If a bee lands on you, don't make any sudden movements
Although no matter how lightly you brush them off, there is always a risk of getting stung by aggravating them. So it's best if you remind yourself that they are not built to sting you and just let them move along on their own.
Cranky bees are not enjoyable to keep. They have aggressive tendencies and are overprotective of the hive. Often when you have cranky bees, you will be unable to get near the hive or you will get stung. Sometimes these bees chase you for just being within eyesight of the hive.
Further analysis of the shaken bees' brains found altered levels of dopamine, serotonin and octopamine, three neurotransmitters implicated in depression. In short, the bees acted like they felt pessimistic, and their brains looked like it, too.
Black, red or similar dark colors should be avoided around bee nests. Think of the Pillsbury Doughboy look, the white coveralls of beekeepers.
“A fear of bees is quite common. In some of our studies, as many as 20% of children will express this fear, says Thomas H. Ollendick, Ph. D., Professor Emeritus for Virginia Tech's Department of Psychology.
Study finds hints of optimism in insects
It might seem unlikely, yet honey bees exhibit pessimism and crayfish can experience anxiety. To find out whether bumble bees have something akin to positive emotions, scientists trained 24 of the insects to enter a closed chamber via a metal cylinder.
Know what to do when a bee is near you: Don't swat at it or you could send it into defense mode. Rather, calmly move away in a straight line until you reach an enclosed shelter. Even then, some more aggressive bees may still sting you. Don't try to hide from bees by diving into water.
Try to get to an enclosed shelter (such as a car) or run until the bees stop following you. It may be necessary to get a quarter mile or more away from where the attack began. Cover your face with whatever is handy, if you can do so without impairing your vision. Never jump into a body of water to escape bees.
Angry bees tend to zip quickly through the air, sometimes even bouncing off your veil. Extremely agitated bees will cluster around your head. They react to your carbon dioxide and tend to go towards your face. You may even see some cling to the mesh and press their abdomens into it in an attempt to sting.
Honeybees generally attack only to defend their colony, but will also attack if they are seriously disturbed outside the nest. Common sources of attack stimulus for honeybees include alarm pheromone, vibrations, carbon dioxide, hair, and dark colors (Crane 1990).
Most of the time, bee sting symptoms are minor and include: Instant, sharp burning pain at the sting site. A red welt at the sting area. Slight swelling around the sting area.
Bees also have a distaste for lavender oil, citronella oil, olive oil, vegetable oil, lemon, and lime. These are all topical defenses you can add to your skin to keep bees away. Unlike other flying insects, bees are not attracted to the scent of humans; they are just curious by nature.
The most likely colors to attract bees, according to scientists, are PURPLE, VIOLET and BLUE.
Some people claim that these blood types will influence whether or not a person gets bed bugs. However, the insects do not show preference for certain types of blood groups.