![]() They’re ground nesters that provide vital pollination to many native plants, but stepping on a nest or otherwise aggravating a bee could land you a sharp sting. The bees are attracted to the water and salts that come from mammal sweat (lending to the insect’s name) so scaring off a source of nutrients is only done if necessary. Native to North and Central America, these gentle giants typically don’t sting. In the case of the giant sweat bee, they sit halfway at a 1.5. In most cases of sweat bees, the sting is very minor and ranks a Level 1. For 10 minutes life is not worth living.” Honey bee (Apis mellifera) – Giant Sweat Bee Dieunomia heteropoda It’s immediate, noisome, visceral, debilitating. “ It’s crawled into your soda can and stung you on the tongue. On one occasion, Schmidt recalls being stung on the tongue, which he ranked a Level 3. A flaming match head lands on your arm and is quenched first with lye and then sulfuric acid.” “ Burning, corrosive, but you can handle it. Initially, Justin Schmidt ranked honey bee stings at Level 2: Although the knowledge that a bee may only sting you once may bring comfort, a typical bee hive can consist of tens of thousands of bees that can quickly spread defense pheromones, and are often known to sting in the same area as the last bee. Honey bees are well known for the fact that they typically can only sting once their barbed stinger becomes trapped in our skin and as the bee attempts to pull away, her innards are ripped out. The most infamous of all bee species, the western honey bee has its roots in Europe and Africa and has since spread its influence across every continent except Antarctica. Fireworks land on your arm.” Bumble Bee -Vladimir Western Honey Bee Apis mellifera The bumblebee hails from all across North America, but has been popularized in other countries, especially for greenhouse pollination. Their smooth stinger also allows them to attack multiple times, adding to the threat. Stings from bumble bees are uncommon the bees are unlikely to sting while foraging, but can become defensive of their nests. ![]() The large, fuzzy garden pollinators we know and love have a sting that is often compared to that of the carpenter bee, and has been given a Level 2 ranking on the pain index. Your fingertip has been slammed by a car door.” “13 – California Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa californica)” by The Hike Guy is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 Bumble Bee Bombus sp. ![]() Justin Schmidt describes being stung on the finger in his book The Sting of the Wild: The pain caused by carpenter bees can easily be magnified given their ability to sting more than once. As the name implies, they are endemic to western North America and form burrows in dead wood to rear their brood. Similar in many aspects to the aforementioned tropical carpenter bee, the California carpenter bee is a shiny black with metallic wings. ![]() “Xylocopa latipes (Drury,1773) Tropical Carpenter Bee” by LennyWorthington is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 California Carpenter Bee Xylocopa californica The Schmidt Pain Index ranks all carpenter bees at a Level 2. If this intervention isn’t sufficient, a female bee will deliver some sharp justice. Male carpenter bees will protect their burrows by hovering outside of them, and aren’t afraid to the face of a potential intruder and warn them to back off. That is, a tube in which female bees lay eggs from. Male bees of all species are entirely incapable of stinging since a stinger is a modified ovipositor. Be careful not to aggravate these giants, though their sting can pack a painful punch. It’s the largest of the carpenter bee species, and despite its intimidating size this species is very gentle and highly unlikely to sting. Native to Southeast Asia, the tropical carpenter bee has a shiny black body and metallic wings. Luckily, no bees fall under level 4, and only fall under level 3 when stung in particularly sensitive areas. He ranks them on a scale of 1 to 4, where 1 is mildly painful and 4 is unbearable and excruciating. Justin Schmidt, an American entomologist, has been stung by thousands of insects during his research, and in 1979 decided to start an index based on the pain caused by the sting of each bug. Pain as a result of stings is measured with the Schmidt pain index. In honey bee venom, for instance, the primary ingredient is a pain-inducing peptide known as melittin. Generally speaking, bee venom consists of toxic proteins and peptides, which are chains of amino acids. Instead, pain results from a complex cocktail of chemicals in bee venom, which can vary greatly and result in different reactions from the body. The pain caused by being stung isn’t a result of the stinger itself like a tiny needle you might only notice a little poke if that was all there was to it.
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