Research
A honey bee’s stinger keeps pumping venom after the bee flies off, and now scientists know how
Earth.com · By Eric Ralls ·
The Brief
- A honey bee's stinger left in skin is a self-contained unit with its own venom sac, muscles and nerves.
- The detached stinger keeps digging in and pumping venom after the bee flies off.
- Source excerpt describes the mechanism; details beyond the excerpt were not available.
Why it matters
It explains why bee stings can keep injecting venom after the bee is gone, so removing the stinger quickly matters for science readers studying insect venom or sting physiology.
Who’s affected
- Anyone stung by honey bees
- Researchers studying insect venom and stinger biology
What to do
- Scrape out a stinger left in skin promptly rather than squeezing it, to limit further venom injection
- #honey bee
- #venom
- #stinger
- #insect biology
- #animal behaviour
A honey bee stings once, leaves its stinger in your skin, and flies off to die. It looks like the end of the attack. It isn’t. The stinger left behind is a self-contained unit, with its own venom sac, muscles and nerves. It keeps digging in and pumping venom on its own after the…
Timeline
Earth.com reports the stinger mechanism study
Earth.com
A honey bee’s stinger keeps pumping venom after the bee flies off, and now scientists know how