The Balancing Act of Honeybee Temperament: Why I Prefer My Bees to Bee Just Nice Enough....But Not Too Nice

In my experience 9/10 times that honeybees present themselves as "mean" or "aggressive" its a symptom of some as of yet unknown underlying issue. Underlying issues could be things such as nocturnal predation (for example skunks eating your bees under cover of darkness) yes it is a thing or vandalism.. (kids with too much time on their hands.. throwing rocks at the honeybee hive(s)body) yup that's a thing too. It could also be loud lawn mowers, or far more frequently we must look to ourselves as the culprits of their behavior. Yes, rushing through inspections, rolling bees who waft distressed bee pheromones, clanking frames, crackling propolis etc. What does the rushed inspection look like to the colony? A hungry bear perhaps? Next time consider approaching the colony as if you are a surgeon, take your time, be respectful, take an extra 2-3 seconds to loosen the inner cover or free the frames from the grip of propolis slowly, mindfully lift the frames taking care not to zero them out against the hive body. Pretend, perhaps you are a bear with no fur or claws, working without a suit of armor, no protective gear, bee the gentle beekeeper & your honeybees will return the favor.