European honey bees came from Europe, brought by the Spaniards and English. They are not federally protected, although local laws may vary.
A "Beehive" is bees in a man-made box. "Wild bees" are really feral bees that escaped from beehives generations ago. Their home is a colony/nest.
A swarm is a ball of bees with the old queen that have split off from an established colony. It hangs out in the open while scouts look for a new home. A swarm is NOT a cloud of bees flying around.
Swarms are gentle and non-aggressive. Leave them alone if possible. When they find an appropriate cavity they will fly away.
Bees in a swarm have enough honey in their stomach to last for three days. If they haven't found a home by then, they will build an open air colony right there. This is rare.
A colony or nest consists of a queen, female workers which are sterile, and drones (males). Only the workers can sting.
Once a worker stings, the barbed stinger and attached poison sac is ripped out of the body and worker will die. The poison sac will continue to pump toxin and also releases an alarm pheromone which will cause attacks by other bees. The best way to remove a stinger is by scraping it off.
An average colony is 30,000 to 60,000 bees.
Bees go outside the hive to pollinate and collect nectar and pollen only the last 2 weeks of their life.
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