Why Do Bees Buzz?: Fascinating Answers to Questions about Bees

9. Bee Stings and Other Defenses

NINE Bee Stings and Other Defenses Question 1: Do all bees sting? Answer:Not all bees can sting. The bee’s sting is a modification of the ovipositor, the female egg-laying organ, and so no males of any bee species sting. Most people are surprised to know that the stinger is kept inside the bee’s body until it is used. Unless you see a bee trying to sting you, you will not see the stinger as a bee flies by or feeds from a flower. There is a group of social bees in the tropics that are not capable of stinging. They either lack stingers or have reduced sting structures without the necessary muscles to extend them as weapons. In this stingless bee family, females can defend themselves from harmful predators using other strategies (see chapter 9, question 7: How do stingless bees defend themselves?). Female worker bees are generally quite peaceful, and they are only inclined to sting when an intruder threatens the colony or when they are alarmed by unfamiliar odors or high-contrast patterns that are easiest for them to see. The queen bee also has a stinger, but she uses it to lay eggs and only stings other queens in order to kill them and prevent them from emerging and threatening her dominance (see chapter 4, question 8: How is the queen bee chosen?). R5192.indb 142 R5192.indb 142 11/30/09 3:02:54 PM 11/30/09 3:02:54 PM BEE STINGS AND OTHER DEFENSES 143 Question 2: What does it feel like to be stung by a bee? Answer: Though the amount of venom in a honey bee sting is small, it can cause a great deal of discomfort and occasional harm. One author describes a bee sting as similar to a car door slamming on your fingers. Others describe it as feeling like touching a hot match. To make matters worse, the stinging bee emits an alarm pheromone that calls for reinforcements, increasing the potential for more toxins to be injected by the bees that respond to her signal. The face and ears are most vulnerable to bee stings, probably because these are the areas where bee predators have the thinnest hair. Bees may also cue on exhaled carbon dioxide to focus their attacks in vulnerable areas. Beekeepers almost always wear a hat and veil, even if they don’t wear other protective clothing. Some beekeepers who have been stung many times build up a tolerance and become effectively immune to the venom. Question 3: How does a bee sting? Answer: The bee’s sting is normally retracted inside her abdomen , which is the third or end section of the bee’s body. When she is alarmed, the sting drops and locks into place like the landing gear on an airplane, and muscles in the abdomen thrust the stinger into its target. When the victim is another insect, the stinger can be used repeatedly, but if she stings a fleshy target, the barbed sting breaks away and is typically left embedded in the victim’s flesh. When the sting breaks off, the venom sac protruding from the end of the sting is often still visibly pumping venom even though it has been torn from the bee’s body. A bee that has lost its sting will die soon after. Question 4: Why do bees sting? Answer: It is impossible to know if bees feel anger, but their behavior can be quite aggressive if they sense signs of disturbance or imminent danger to the stability of the nest, and they R5192.indb 143 R5192.indb 143 11/30/09 3:02:54 PM 11/30/09 3:02:54 PM 144 WHY DO BEES BUZZ? seem to be able to moderate their responses depending on the nature of the risk they perceive. The risk is highest at the nest, rather than on flowers in fields, which is why most bee stings occur near the nest. Most bees will not sting without some trigger because the consequences can be costly. Depending on the target, stinging may cause the bee’s stinger to break off, which results in the bee’s death in short order. Some scientists have described the triggers to many bee behaviors as being dependent on thresholds of response that can change depending upon the bee’s age and experience. For example , perhaps only certain bees...