FREE BEE REMOVAL?
Are there really free bee removal services in Surprise?
Africanized Honeybees (now called African bees) are here to stay in Arizona. The USDA had predicted that "Africanized Honeybees" would not cross the Arizona Mexico border until 1995, however, the same USDA bee researchers were shocked when the first Africanized bee stinging incident occurred in June 1993 in Surprise, and not anywhere near the US Mexico border. A woman began to wash her 70 pound dog on the back porch when the bees reacted to the smell of the soap and water and attacked her and her dog. She survived and the dog died. That bee attack occurred on June 6, 1993 and our company founder, Thomas Martin, was called to that site to exterminate the Africanized Bees and thereafter to remove the honeycombs from that hive.
Africanized bees proliferated and in 1996, both the US Department of Agriculture, and the Arizona Department of Agriculture declared that Arizona's "feral bee" (wild bee) population had become totally African honeybees. This honeybee species has caused millions of dollars of property damage to Arizona homes, and commercial building structures on Arizona properties.
Since then, these "killer bees" have caused many human fatalities and thousands of animal stinging deaths. Further, although most bee attacks are not fatal, countless injuries to people, pets and livestock have occurred from even the smallest of African Bee attacks. Even if a person is not allergic to bee stings, the normal reaction to one bee sting will last 5-7 days with severe swelling, redness and extreme itchiness.
African honeybees "bees" are genetically programmed to raise a new queen, the colony then dividing in approximately one-half, with one-half of the bees leaving the "Mother Colony" with the old queen to begin a new colony in another location. This process is called swarming. Where European honeybees would swarm once or possibly twice a year, African honeybees can swarm more than 10 times a year. This results in one African bee colony and it's swarms being capable of creating up to 33 colonies in one year. Then, within 24 hours of a new swarm inhabiting a structural cavity, the bees build honeycomb. Therefore, even if a "live bee removal" were feasible, homeowners would be foolish to permit anyone to attempt to perform live African bee removal when African bees attack and cause so many injuries and property damage.
We know that it is not possible to do live bee removal of African killer bees when the bees are inside a cavity of a structure, and companies who advertize live bee removal or live bee control, are seducing customers and then will likely do a bait and switch. Think about it, why would anyone want to offer free bee removal or free bee control for African killer bees from an irrigation valve box, overhang eave, soffit, rafter, gable, a storage shed, floor, Conex container, perimeter patio block wall, stucco wall, garage wall foundation, stucco pillar, bird board, vent board, scupper, drain pipe, rain gutter, viga beam, parapet, cricket, tile roof, shingle roof, roof vent, vacant or foreclosed house? This is a ploy to get customers to hire them to perform a service that is not possible to do.
Some companies advertise under a "free bee removal" listing on the Internet. The question most people should ask is: Is there really a "free bee removal" service in Arizona?
Here are the facts:
- Any commercial bee removal company has to make a profit to stay in business. If they advertise under "free bee removal", then this usually means that they are willing to do a "free" inspection and will try to sell you bee extermination after they look at your bee problem. This is an advertising scam to get you to call them and is usually a "bait and switch" when they get to your home. They believe that if they get to your home and talk to you, then they will be able to convince you that you have a serious bee problem and that you have to pay them because of the difficulty of the job.
- There are no public agencies that will offer free bee removal service in Arizona. For example, if you call 911, unless someone is being stung and in imminent danger of death or serious injury, they will refer you to a Licensed Bee Removal Company. The Fire Department's job is public safety and the preservation of life. They are actually prohibited from "exterminating bees of any kind unless there has been a major stinging and clear danger of humans being attacked if calling a licensed bee exterminator will take too long. Typically, when and if a fire department responds to a stinging attack, they will treat the stinging victims and tell them to stay indoors. Then, they always will instruct the property owner, or occupant, to phone a licensed, trained bee removal specialist. They will remove the person to safety and tell you to call a Licensed Bee Removal Company. They are not qualified or responsible to remedy the bee infestation problem that caused the bee attack.
- There is no federal, state, municipal or local agency that will respond to a bee problem let alone provide free bee removal or free honeycomb removal service. Maricopa, Pinal, Pima, Cochise, Graham and Santa Cruz counties have zoning ordinances that limit where beekeepers can keep bees and specify that homeowners who allow feral bees and wasps to remain on their property are in violation of those county ordinances. For example, Pima County, Arizona, has even gone so far as to declare feral bee colonies and wasp colonies on a property are a pest and safety nuisance and a violation of Pima County ordinances. A $2000.00 fine is the normal fine and the County will hire a licensed bee removal company to abate the problem and collect that cost from the property owner. If not paid timely, the County records a lien on the property.
- As it is "unlawful to hive, harbor or cause the proliferation of African bees." No beekeeper will want to collect an Africanized bee colony or African bee swarm for their own personal use. If a beekeeper claims to want them, ask yourself how it is possible to accomplish this? When a live bee removal is attempted and it goes wrong and the bees begin attacking, the liability always falls on the property owner. No beekeeper will have liability insurance to perform "live bee removal" as no insurance company will take on that risk. Therefore, the property owner will sustain the financial liability as we have seen in many cases, where lawsuits are filed against the homeowner as a result of a bee removal that went wrong.
- We have had callers that are misled thinking that the honey that the bees produce, has commercial value, and could be re-used. These same callers often believe that there must be someone who would want to do a honeycomb cut-out and removal simply for keeping the honey. It is not feasible to "save bees" once a colony has built honeycomb. The colony would have to be exterminated, and pesticides would contaminate the honey and for that reason alone, it is impossible to consider utilizing the removed honeycomb. In fact, the laws require that we go through great effort to double bag the honeycomb that we remove at honeycomb removal jobs, and then take it to a proper dumpsite and make sure it is disposed of properly. As commercial beekeepers spend a great deal of time and effort making certain their hives forage on plants without coming into contact with insecticides, what beekeeper would want to consider saving honey that could contain pesticides?
- Don't be fooled by misinformation about "free bee removal" services, in Arizona. Read the advertised offering for free bee removal services carefully. The bee removal industry is highly competitive and many people in this industry, particularly inexperienced and unlicensed companies or wholesalers, that contract other local pest control companies to work for them, will try to take advantage of you. In Arizona, there is no such thing as a "free bee removal." Trust the experts and call us first to get the facts and straight answers about your bee problem! Call SurpriseBee Removal Company first and get straight answers and the facts!