‘British honeybees do not “attack”. It is a natural defence mechanism’

As a beekeeper I was appalled at the way you story about the lady stung by bees (Gazette, May 18) was sensationalised and I feel duty-bound to defend, and explain about, these most important insects. I am worried that uninformed members of the public will now go round spraying bees with insecticide.

These insects have been on this world for more than 25 million years and now we humans have all but destroyed them in less than 30 years.

British honeybees do not “attack”. This woman was unfortunate in that she probably came into contact with a swarm, which contains a queen and up to 20,000 bees looking for a new home. This is the way honeybees procreate. I have accidentally walked into the flight path of a honeybee in the garden and it has stung me. This is a natural defence mechanism if a bee feels threatened, it is not intentional. The pheromones released by a dying bee would automatically put the rest of the swarm in defensive mode to protect their queen.

I hope this sensationalism doesn’t harm our alarmingly dwindling honeybee population which is under serious threat from the heavy use of dangerous pesticides in agriculture, and the importing of bee diseases from other countries. Without honeybees it would be a challenge for us to produce enough food to survive.

I can only hope that you print a follow-up story to explain how honeybees live and how incredibly important they are to the human race.

However, I deeply sympathise with this woman and wish her a speedy recovery. Mrs Margaret Rickard, by email