HOUSTON - Africanized "killer" bees are the type of bees one expert says have swarmed into several colonies in River Oaks.
Africanized bees are typically smaller than the average European bee, but far more dangerous, and here's why.
For starters, they attack in larger numbers and for longer periods of time. The River Oaks victim was stung more than 40 times. Victims though can be stung hundreds or even thousands of times.
Experts say these bees are extremely aggressive, a lot more than your average honey bee when it comes to defending their colony.
So what do you do if you're attacked? One word: Run. Try to find an enclosed shelter like a car. You have to find cover. If you can't, keep running, because these bees will chase you, sometimes as far as half a mile.
And never, ever kill an attacking bee. Doing that will only make things worse. Killing a bee releases a scent that only attracts even more bees from the colony.
As for the woman who was attacked in River Oaks, her family tells KHOU she's doing better after being stung more than 40 times and taken to the emergency room. Her family says she usually walked with her 1-year-old infant, and had the bees attacked then, this could have been far worse.