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Date: Wed, 15 May 1996 22:23:09 -0700
From: Gabriel Rossman <gabrielr@ucla.edu>
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: hymenoptera=stinging, FAQ cite

I have a citation to verify the following; T. Only hymenopterans sting. A large dragonfly may be strong enough to

pinch.
---
"Insects and Allergy: and what to do about them" by Claude A. Frazier, M.D. and FK Brown; published by University of Oklahoma Press in 1980, says the following on page 13;
The biters:
ant, mosquito, horsefly, bedbug, wheel bug, blister beetle, flea, spider, tick, mite.

The stingers:
honeybee, bumblebee, hornet, yellow jacket, scorpion.

"Insect Sting Allergy" by Ulrich R. Muller (translated by Brian N. Chandler-Lorenz) and published in 1990 by Gustav Fischer Stuttgart of New York, collaborates. On page 1 it says "Fleas, deerflies and mosquitoes bite men in order to suck blood.... Stings from Hymenoptera of the suborder Aculeata, in which the ovipositor is adapted as a weapon with associated poison glands, can also cause painful local reactions. The venom apparatus is used by Aculeatae, and above all by the Vespoidea, Sphecoidea and Pompiloidea mainly for paralyzing prey animals." He lists certain ants among the stingers also. So basically hymenoptera sting. Of tangential interest I found that the first recorded death from an insect sting was Pharoah Menes, who was stung by a hornet while travelling.

Thus I submit that the FAQ be changed to read; T. Among insects, only hymenopterans can sting. Other pests such as mosquitoes, horseflies and dragonflies bite.

+=+=+=+=+=+=+

More hymenoptera cites:

From: weemba@sagi.wistar.upenn.edu (Matthew P Wiener)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Re: hymenoptera=stinging, FAQ cite
Date: 19 May 1996 16:36:32 GMT

In article <4nhvp3$km4@panix2.panix.com>, bradham@panix (Bo Bradham) writes: >Gabriel Rossman <gabrielr@ucla.edu> wrote:

>>I have a citation to verify the following;

>>T. Only hymenopterans sting. A large dragonfly may be strong enough to
>> pinch.

>>"Insects and Allergy: and what to do about them" by Claude A. Frazier,
>>M.D. and FK Brown; published by University of Oklahoma Press in 1980, says
>>the following on page 13;
>>The biters:
>>ant, mosquito, horsefly, bedbug, wheel bug, blister beetle, flea, spider,
>>tick, mite.

Millions of insect species bite. The above list is rather incomplete.

Fleas, spiders, ticks, and mites are not insects.

>>The stingers:
>>honeybee, bumblebee, hornet, yellow jacket, scorpion.

Scorpions are not insects.

>>You will notice that all of the ennumerated "stingers" are hymenoptera,
>>with the exception of scorpions. Curiously ants, which are hymenoptera, do
>>not sting in this enumeration.

Most hymenoptera species have a sting, although not all of them use it.

Many ant species sting, many do not.

>I'll just add that fire ants sting. And they can do it more than once.

There are species of bees that can sting repeatedly. And species of ants that can sting, but only once.

> Gill, Paul G Jr.
> The sting.
> Outdoor Life 187:14-15 May '91
> Bees, wasps, hornets, and fire ants have a well-deserved
> reputation for lethality, and outdoorsmen should watch out
> for them. Stings from these members of the Hymenoptera
> order kill between 50 and 100 people each year in the United
> States, more than all other venomous animals combined.

Not just fire ants.

One of the characteristic features of order Hymenoptera is that they normally have a modified oviposter, suitable for stinging or other conflict resolution tasks.

Fire ants have some rather rude chemicals in their poison glands, which is why their sting burns. Most ant stinging is not bothersome to humans. Regarding allergies, that reminds me that there is one species that has histamines in its venom.

Also, there are stingless bees, I recall the tribe melipones. Some of them are extremely ferocious.

Anyway, this can all be found in any good arthropod reference. I would not rely on popular or semipopular books (on allergies?!) for accurate information about insects.

See, for example, Wilson THE SOCIAL INSECTS or Hoelldobler & Wilson THE ANTS. I suspect a comprehensive invertebrate textbook (like Brusca & Brusca THE INVERTEBRATES) will give a better description of Hymenoptera then the above.