{"id":4006,"date":"2026-10-28T14:24:54","date_gmt":"2026-10-28T14:24:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/unprecedented-images-reveal-how-the-bees-sting-works\/"},"modified":"2026-10-28T14:24:56","modified_gmt":"2026-10-28T14:24:56","slug":"unprecedented-images-reveal-how-the-bees-sting-works","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/unprecedented-images-reveal-how-the-bees-sting-works\/","title":{"rendered":"Unprecedented Images Reveal How the Bee&#8217;s Sting Works"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><\/figure>\n<p><strong>By studying in intimate detail the mechanism of a honeybee\u2019s barbed stinger, researchers have identified the twofold process that allows these insects to deliver their venom with remarkable efficiency.<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Miniature Pistons<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Unlike wasps and other hornets, honeybees typically sting only once. This defensive strategy means their stinger remains embedded in the skin of the target, often tearing away part of the abdomen when they attempt to fly off. For more than a century, scientists have studied the venom-containing sac, but until now the precise workings of the components it holds remained unclear.<\/p>\n<section class=\"incontent-related\"><span class=\"incontent-related__title\">Read also<\/span> <span class=\"incontent-related__desc\">54,700 kilometers: a whale shark completes a record voyage<\/span><\/section>\n<p>To address this gap, Fiorella Ramirez-Esquivel, from Macquarie University, and her colleagues used ultra-fast cameras and high-resolution micro-CT scanning.<\/p>\n<p>Experiments conducted with a transparent gel that simulates human tissue helped clarify the role of two \u201c<em>lancets<\/em>\u201d equipped with flexible valves, which slide inside the chamber, or the &#8220;<em>bulb<\/em>&#8221; where venom accumulates before being injected.<\/p>\n<p>When a valve drops, it expands against the chamber walls and acts as a piston to push venom toward the exit. On the rise, it retracts, allowing the chamber to refill while limiting fluid reflux into the wound. Mid-stroke, the two valves cross and deform briefly before resuming their pumping action.<\/p>\n<section class=\"incontent-related\"><span class=\"incontent-related__title\">Read also<\/span> <span class=\"incontent-related__desc\">This bat with a disproportionately large penis is the first mammal to reproduce without penetration<\/span><\/section>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"cssc-content-video-wrapper\"><iframe title=\"High-speed video of a honey bee's sting in action\" width=\"680\" height=\"510\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube-nocookie.com\/embed\/xDJIbCI-c-c?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>A Marvel of Natural Engineering<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>According to the authors of the new study, published in the journal <em>PNAS<\/em>, this mechanism stands as a marvel of natural engineering.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>Traditional piston pumps typically integrate rigid components and valves to regulate fluid movement<\/em>,\u201d explains Ramirez-Esquivel. \u201c<em>Here, the bee achieves the same goal using flexible structures that twist and constantly change shape<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>By enhancing our understanding of the fascinating biology of bees, the recent findings could also pave the way for new types of micro-pumps, especially those integrated into medical devices, enabling unprecedented control over fluid flow.<\/p>\n<section class=\"incontent-related\"><span class=\"incontent-related__title\">Read also<\/span> <span class=\"incontent-related__desc\">194 years: researchers uncover the secrets of longevity of the world&#8217;s oldest terrestrial animal<\/span><\/section>\n<p>Earlier this year, a study revealed that bees count the petals of flowers to optimize their daily foraging.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4007,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[996,314,412,2605,704,2606],"class_list":["post-4006","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-bees","tag-images","tag-reveal","tag-sting","tag-unprecedented","tag-works","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-50"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4006","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4006"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4006\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4008,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4006\/revisions\/4008"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4007"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4006"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4006"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4006"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}