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Author Topic: Most painful sting  (Read 30305 times)

Online Ben Framed

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Re: Most painful sting
« Reply #20 on: October 05, 2019, 10:02:42 pm »
Quoting HP
'My veil for normal work around the beeyard is just an orange/amber set of form fitting safety glasses.''

Good idea, thanks.

Online Ben Framed

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Re: Most painful sting
« Reply #21 on: February 02, 2024, 05:22:50 pm »
quoting HP
''Closest has been into the eyeball itself. That was a real trip!  Own personal built in  kaleidoscope lit up. Was really kool.  Though very scary wrt potential for permanent nerve damage.''

This is my concern, catching one in the eye itself.  This is the reason that I use the veil as much as I do, even though I sometimes pitch it aside anyway. What did the professionals do to treat this situation? Was the stinger removed by professionals or did you or someone close do it before you went to a professional?  How was it removed in your situation?
Phillip

My veil for normal work around the beeyard is just an orange/amber set of form fitting safety glasses.  When the weather is overcast, the bees are particularly testy, or I am intent on doing purposeful major disruptions then I suit up. 
The eyeball sting occurred long ago, an early morning moving hives.  Jumped out of the truck, walked back to check straps and as I walked by she came rip-roaring out of the hive entrance which on the deck of the truck is near eye level.  Point blank range attack.  Grabbed hold of my eyelid and jammed me In the white of the eyeball. Lightning fast she was! 
Thankfully I was not alone.  Partner pulled out his pocket knife and scraped / picked the stinger out quickly. Treatment was compress (ice chilled cloth), benadryl, and an eyepatch for the week to keep eyesight stimulation minimal.  No problems, no complications.  It helped immensely that we were well into bee season and my normal reaction to sting and venom is less than a mosquito bite welt, if anything at all.

Spring is coming do you wear eye protection?

Phillip

Offline Occam

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Re: Most painful sting
« Reply #22 on: February 02, 2024, 11:58:46 pm »
I thus far have rarely worn anything. I do plan on picking up a veil to use this year. While I don't generally mind bees landing on me or flying around me while working with the girls I don't care for them buzzing my face or ears. I just kept forgetting to get one last year.

As for worst place I've been stung I would have to go with inside my nose. Made the nostril swell up nicely and the skin peeled off the inside edge too. Rather avoid that happening again haha.

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Offline maxell86

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Re: Most painful sting
« Reply #23 on: January 06, 2025, 03:08:13 am »
Tetragonula carbonaria are stingless, they use their mandibles to nip inside your ears, face, eyes, nose. Had a few bite me in the left outter ear canal and in the nostril, no choice but to squish them out with the finger.

Honeybees, any joint sting will cain, had one sting me in the left ankle and it was painful for 5 weeks and itchy. Apart from that other stings are less.

But nothing like softer parts such as the eye/nose. Heard one 30year guy say he welcomes the honeybee stings on his hands for athritis.
Depends if you get used to the typical sting symtoms, overcoming the athritic pain for other pain.
Which finger do the bees usually go for... Thumb?

Some honeybee strains must have more powerful venon, but haven't read anything about this subject. Between the italians, germans, etc and their hybrids.

Online iddee

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Re: Most painful sting
« Reply #24 on: January 06, 2025, 05:03:12 am »
Honeybees have more powerful stings by individuals more than strains in the strains I have encountered. I place stings on different parts of my body for muscle and joint pain. One pain may be nearly unnoticeable and the next nearly unbearable from the same hive,
"Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me . . . Anything can happen, child. Anything can be"

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Online Terri Yaki

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Re: Most painful sting
« Reply #25 on: January 06, 2025, 09:27:55 am »
Honeybees have more powerful stings by individuals more than strains in the strains I have encountered. I place stings on different parts of my body for muscle and joint pain. One pain may be nearly unnoticeable and the next nearly unbearable from the same hive,
As a newbee, I was noticing that and trying to figure out why or if it was just my imagination. So...it sounds like the reason is 'just because'.

Online iddee

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Re: Most painful sting
« Reply #26 on: January 06, 2025, 09:56:51 am »
A snake venom gets stronger with age between bites. Honeybee venom may do the same. House bees may have a weaker venom than older foragers. Just an opinion there.
"Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me . . . Anything can happen, child. Anything can be"

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Online Michael Bush

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Re: Most painful sting
« Reply #27 on: January 06, 2025, 09:57:50 am »
>So...it sounds like the reason is 'just because'.

There are some theories, but I would vote for "just because".
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Online BeeMaster2

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Re: Most painful sting
« Reply #28 on: January 06, 2025, 09:59:45 am »
One factor that affects how powerful a sting is is the age of the bee. Usually newly hatched bees stingers are still soft. Later they can sting but have very little venom. When they are just about ready to bee field bees they are guard bees and their venom is fully developed.
I also think some bees in a hive do have different types of venom making one hurt more or less.
Where you get stung also makes a difference. I have been stung in the nose almost a dozen times it it has to be the worse.
Jim Altmiller
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Online iddee

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Re: Most painful sting
« Reply #29 on: January 06, 2025, 10:15:18 am »
The nose is bad, Jim, but the tear duct sting in the outer edge of the eye will make the nose sting feel like a walk in the park.  The funniest sting is trying to talk after a sting on the tongue.
"Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me . . . Anything can happen, child. Anything can be"

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Offline maxell86

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Re: Most painful sting
« Reply #30 on: January 12, 2025, 02:21:16 am »
Agreed, the nurse bees and other hive worker bees have less potent venon. Older forages are the potent stingers. Hence why some folk say that is the reason they send the oldies out to war.
When looking for the queen to requeen or maniplate brood, no gloves the nurse bees sting only lasts a short time.
Guard worker bees are likely to butt you in the face to warn you to back off.  That is how they sting people in the nose, around the eyes.

Then there are odurs / scent that set them off. Anyone experience eating bananas, other food? Dogs, cats, err not eating them, coming into contact with them before beekeeping.


Online Ben Framed

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Re: Most painful sting
« Reply #31 on: January 12, 2025, 08:40:54 am »
Quote
Dogs, cats

Max, Bees definitely do not like my Border Collie He has learned to watch from a distance. 😊

Online Terri Yaki

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Re: Most painful sting
« Reply #32 on: January 12, 2025, 08:51:15 am »
My cat kind of ignores the hives but one time she stuck her nose right in the entrance. For some reason, they didn't bother her.

 

anything