Is it illegal to kill honeybees?

ttthay · Post by **ttthay** » Sun Jul 13, 2008 4:13 pm

Is it against the law for a pest control company to kill honeybees? I was suppose to get a hive off of the side of a building yesterday and after working a hour or so to load my truck with scaffolding, boards, etc, and finally got to the site...all that i found was alot of torn down comb and dead bees that had been sprayed.

And to top it all, the owner of the business told me last week, that the pest control company was going to charge him $200.00. Go figure.

Post by **Wally** » Sun Jul 13, 2008 6:22 pm

No, it is not illegal. It is highly discouraged, and the state asks the exterminators to try and contact a beekeeper. Some do, some don't. Most of my removals come from go-forth, otho, and terminix. Therefore, I try to recommend them when someone asks me about who to call when they do need an exterminator. Maybe if we spread the word like this, we can get more business for the ones that do, and less business for the ones that don't call beekeepers.

Kurt Bower · Post by **Kurt Bower** » Mon Jul 14, 2008 4:00 am

After speaking with a State apiarist I believe the following to be true.

It is illegal to kill any beneficial insect; the honeybee falls into this category.

But... the exceptions to this rule would be if the bees were in someplace that could potentially cause harm. Ie... Schoolyard, hospital sidewalk and depending on the interpretation maybe the side of a building.

You might want to remind the people that it is illegal to kill honeybees but I doubt it could be enforced.

Kurt

Post by **Wally** » Mon Jul 14, 2008 6:30 am

Kurt, could you give a reference on this?

Kurt Bower · Post by **Kurt Bower** » Tue Jul 15, 2008 4:06 am

Richard Lippard Statesville, NC 28677 (704) 528-4948
Richard.Lippard@ncmail.net

Wally:

I specifically asked Richard about this during the Field day in April.