Local bee information

Bee control in Oklahoma

Learn what to look for around your property, explore your city, and ask about an inspection or a quote.

Bees in Oklahoma: what to know

Around Oklahoma

Conditions vary across the state. Choose your city below, then describe what’s happening around your home or business.

What to note

Where you see bees, how long it has been going on, and anything you’ve already tried are the most useful details to mention.

A useful next step

Ask about an inspection, what treatment would involve, and whether follow-up visits are included. You don’t need to identify the problem yourself before getting in touch.

Local research

Bees in Oklahoma: what the public record shows

Before you compare quotes, it helps to know which bees actually live in Oklahoma, when they are busiest, and what the state figures look like. Everything below links to the agency or university page it came from.

43 counties

Oklahoma counties with DNA-confirmed Africanized honey bee populations

AHB is widespread across the southern and central parts of the state.

Oklahoma State University Extension

Bee species recorded in Oklahoma

Western honey bee (European honey bee) (Apis mellifera) — Managed colonies are surveyed by USDA NASS in the listed states; swarms leave hives in spring and move into wall voids, chimneys, and trees. If a colony is killed and not remove…
Africanized honey bee (Apis mellifera scutellata hybrids) — Visually indistinguishable from European honey bees; far more defensive and swarm more often. 'They entered Texas in 1990, Arizona and New Mexico in 1993, and California in 1994…
Eastern carpenter bee (Xylocopa virginica) — Large black-and-yellow bee with a shiny bare abdomen that bores round, about 1/2-inch tunnels into unpainted softwood trim, decks, fascia and railings. 'There is only one specie…

When bees are busiest in Oklahoma

Spring swarm season; AHB colonies may swarm repeatedly through summer.

OSU: 'If a colony is found in your home, call a pest control operator, beekeepers in your area, or other experts in bee removal'. A list of certified pest control operators is kept by the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry.

Rules that apply in Oklahoma

EPA bee advisory box label language for neonicotinoid pesticides (2013)

For context, nationally

788 deaths (an average of 72 deaths per year) — Sting deaths, hornets/wasps/bees, 2011–2021. CDC MMWR
84% — Share of sting deaths among males, 2011–2021. CDC MMWR

Sources: Oklahoma State University Extension; CDC MMWR; Honey Bee Colonies (August 2026); African Honey Bee, Africanized Honey Bee, Killer Bee (EENY-429 / IN790); Carpenter Bees. Figures are quoted as the source prints them. How we check our sources

Explore Oklahoma cities

Ardmore

Humid Subtropical · rural setting

Bee control in Oklahoma

Bees in Oklahoma: what to know

Around Oklahoma

What to note

A useful next step

Bees in Oklahoma: what the public record shows

Bee species recorded in Oklahoma

When bees are busiest in Oklahoma

Rules that apply in Oklahoma

For context, nationally

Explore Oklahoma cities

Ardmore

Bartlesville

Broken Arrow

Edmond

Enid

Lawton

Midwest City

Moore

Muskogee

Norman

Oklahoma City

Owasso

Ponca City

Shawnee

Stillwater

Tulsa

Durant

Ask about bee control in Oklahoma