A bee sting is strictly a sting from a bee (honey bee, bumblebee, sweat bee, etc.). In the vernacular it can mean a sting of a bee, wasp, hornet, or yellow jacket. Some people may even call the bite of a horse-fly a bee sting. The stings of most of these species can be quite painful, and are therefore keenly avoided by many people.
Bee stings differ from insect bites, and the venom or toxin of stinging insects is quite different. Therefore, the body's reaction to a bee sting may differ significantly from one species to another.
The most aggressive stinging insects are vespid wasps (including bald-faced hornets and other yellow jackets) but not hornets in general (e.g., the European hornet is less harmful). All of these insects aggressively defend their nests.
In people with insect sting allergy, a bee sting may trigger a dangerous anaphylactic reaction that is potentially deadly. Honey bee stings release pheromones that prompt other nearby bees to attack.
Read more about Bee Sting: Honey Bee Stings, Treatment
Famous quotes containing the words bee and/or sting:
“Ah evil wedlock! Ah fate!
she incites all to evil,
she flutters over all things,
like a bee in flight.”
—Hilda Doolittle (1886–1961)
“Artists must be sacrificed to their art. Like bees, they must put their lives into the sting they give.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)