Run! It’s a Bee…

We’ve all been there. Maybe you still are. For some, bees equal stings! This is the traditional view of the bee, rivaling the more positive view of the honey-making glory of our little friends. For many, it is a key reason why even the thought of beekeeping is beyond consideration!

But just how real is that fear and how on earth do beekeepers handle being stung every day, as they presumably do – right?

Well, no.

It’s true that our bees have the capability to sting and when they do it’s no fun. But with so many beekeepers happily doing their thing every day, what’s the true story about bee stings? Let’s look at bee stings and put them in context. You might feel a little more at ease with a better understanding by the time you have finished this lesson.

Is Being Stung a Badge of Honor for the Beekeeper?

ABSOLUTELY NOT! We feel strongly about this. We might even burn a few bridges here among more “seasoned beekeepers”.

You can easily find beekeepers who openly state “If you haven’t yet been stung by a bee you are not a real beekeeper”. For those folks, it is considered a rite of passage. And, to be fair, when – if – you have that first bee sting it won’t be particularly enjoyable but your understanding of the bee and a bee’s capabilities just grew!

But is it a “weakness” to have never been stung? No, it’s not. Let’s first consider your actions.

Bees sting when they are threatened and, as a beekeeper, practicing natural, graceful, and calm actions minimizes the chance of being stung. If a bee stings, then “something broke” and you have met a bee that felt the need to defend herself.

That is not to say that this situation is always avoidable, but it is a simple fact that a bee stings as something of a last resort (for reasons we will discover below).

So how does that translate into you being “less of a beekeeper” if you haven’t yet been stung? It doesn’t!

We are being slightly provocative here, of course. We certainly accept the occasional sting will happen and, when it does, it’s human nature to feel you have “paid your dues” and joined the fraternity of beekeepers.

But the idea that anyone who hasn’t yet been stung is, by that definition, less of a beekeeper is misplaced!

Let’s put it this way…a beekeeper who hasn’t yet been stung is one who has not yet placed a bee in a difficult position where she feels threatened enough to sting. Does that feel like something to be “ashamed about”?

There are some extremely good beekeepers who have never been stung. Really! As one example, one of our contributors was three years into her beekeeping experience before her first sting. The author of this article, went through his entire first year (the “beginner” stage, when he’s less certain, by definition) without a sting.

Avoiding bee stings is not rare!

It is fair to say that a “frightened” beekeeper is one that is less relaxed. That message somehow gets through to our bees, based on the urgency of our actions. And if it takes a sting or two for you a) to realize that stings are really not THAT bad and b) subsequently act more calmly around your bees – well, maybe it is true that being stung may help you “evolve” as a beekeeper.

So yes, we get it! If you happen to be stung, you will probably feel you have crossed a line of some sort! Just don’t let anyone tell you that you are not a real beekeeper till you have.

What if You Are Allergic to Bee Stings?

If you have never been stung by a bee before, it is worth a visit to the doctor to check if you are likely to have an allergic reaction. Only around 2% of the population have an allergy to bee stings and are vulnerable to anaphylactic shock. This is a very serious situation, where your body swells up, including your airway, to the extent you cannot breathe. It is far better to know ahead of time and be prepared.

This, of course, sounds dramatic, and for the small number of people with an allergy, it is certainly a serious issue. So, it makes sense to be cautious and get checked.

Should You Avoid Bee Stings?

Did we really ask that question (given what we just said)? Yes, we did, and suspect we confused you!

Of course, you will no doubt join the rest of mankind and at least try to avoid bee stings. But, believe it or not, there is a qualifier to even that simple statement.

The body adjusts to bee stings. Over time the pain lessens as the body reacts. Some beekeepers intentionally let bees sting early in the season, specifically to make subsequent stings less irritating.

We are not advocating that, but the fact that some beekeepers take this approach is worth mentioning, to put this in context.

Why Do Bees Sting?

The First Sting

Let’s start by looking at bee stings and what they are. Be aware that not all bees have the capability to sting. Unfortunately for us, the most common type of bee and the ones we keep – honey bees – do indeed possess stingers. But even then, there’s the qualifier that not all honey bees have or use a stinger.

Bees sting when they feel threatened. That’s it! Keep this basic principle in mind and you are already a long way towards understanding your bees and reducing the chance of being stung.

So let’s state that again – bees sting when they feel threatened.

Bees can make a mistake or two and the important word here is when they FEEL threatened. As you work with your bees in a loving, graceful, calm way you are helping your bees understand that they are not in danger. But if, for whatever reason, a bee feels trapped then there’s the possibility she will attempt to sting.

With tens of thousands of bees swirling around and doing their job, all while you are temporarily ripping apart and rebuilding their home – well, you can see the potential here!

The Potential for More Stings

We have seen how bees use pheromones. One important pheromone is the alarm pheromone (there are actually a couple of variations on this). When a bee feels threatened and reaches the point where she stings, she will emit this pheromone. This is a signal to the rest of the colony that danger is nearby and causes them to go in for the sting too.

What Exactly IS a Bee Sting?

Mechanics

Let’s say a bee has decided to sting you. What exactly happens?

The dangerous goods are stored in the venom sac. After the bee has stung, the stinger will continue to wiggle and pump venom into the victim until the stinger eventually quits moving or is removed. As you might imagine, this is a good reason to remove the stinger reasonably soon – although most victims are already motivated to do so anyway!

The worker bee stinger is barbed, which nature has created very specifically to dig in and do damage!

Chemistry

Great news! Bee venom is around 88% water, by volume. What could go wrong?!!!

Well, the other 12% isn’t that great.

Bee stings include a venom called apitoxin. This is made up of multiple proteins, which have many different effects on people. The main ingredient is the toxin mellitin which is, incidentally, a peptide that is now being used to treat diseases. By dry weight, mellitin comprises about 50% of the venom.

Think that’s the full story? Let’s throw in some histamine, to ensure capillaries leak fluid, causing itching. How about some apimin, to destroy nerve tissue? Or some hyaluronidase to break down cell tissue?

Nature has designed bee venom to be very effective at what it does!

Which Bees Sting?

As beekeepers, we’re focused on the honey bee. The good news is that not all honey bees even have a stinger, let alone use it. The bad news is that the bees that have stingers and those most likely to use them are workers – which make up probably 95% or more of the bees in your hive. Drat!

To summarize…

• Drones don’t have stingers. So that’s simple! Pick a drone up, roll him around (gently, because you are a kind soul) and whisper to him you have evil intentions – but he still won’t be able to sting you!
• Queens have stingers but rarely sting. It is rare to hear of people being stung by a queen, even if only because of the numbers (thousands of workers vs. one queen). But she is certainly not inclined to use her stinger anyway.
• Workers have stingers and know how to use them! If we are stung by one of our bees, it’s almost certainly a worker.

How Do Bee Stingers Differ?

Let’s consider the differences between worker and queen stingers (given that the drone is a non-player in the world of stings).

Worker stingers are barbed. This is often their downfall. As they sting, the stinger is inserted into the target. When the worker tries to pull away the stinger remains in the target, along with plenty of other “bee parts” too. That’s a dead worker bee right there!

In fact, this story of workers meeting their maker when they die needs to be qualified somewhat. We tend to assume this happens all the time because when they sting human skin they do indeed tend to die. This is due to the toughness of human skin and its role in ripping out the stinger. But worker bees can sting other targets that are less tough and live to tell the story if the stinger can be withdrawn cleanly.

Queens have stingers but they are not barbed. This means they can sting and sting again (even human skin) and the “death by barb” issue is not a factor. The primary use of the queen’s stinger is when she checks for unborn sister bees in the colony after a swarm, hunts them down, and stings through the capped cell to kill them.

How Do Bee Stings Feel?

Not good! You really don’t want to be stung by a bee. However, you probably don’t want to be hurt in general so, in that regard, bee stings are just another event to be avoided. In reality, it’s difficult to put an estimate on the degree of pain for a number of reasons.

• The pain varies. First, the degree of perceived pain is dependent on the location of the body where the stinger lands. As a rule, stings on or around the face are bad news at so many levels and will pack a punch. You REALLY want to avoid being stung on the head, even more so than other parts of the body.
• The body adjusts. Our bodies are remarkable and will adjust to handle the pain a little better as you are stung more.
• The itching. For many it’s not really the sting itself that is the most discomforting, but the itching afterwards.

What Can You Do to Prevent Bee Stings?

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