Abdomen#
1 . The abdomen contains what parts?
Organs of digestion
Organs of reproduction
Glands
2 . What is the first chamber of the three-chambered stomach in the worker bees called?
Honey stomach
3 . Food, after passing through the pharynx enters the “honey stomach”. Describe the function of this “stomach.”
It is not a true stomach since no digestion takes place there. The main purpose is to hold nectar collected from flowers before it is converted into honey. Nectar can be regurgitated back into the mouth and given to another bee in the colony if needed.
4 . Describe wax glands and their function.
Wax glands, which are located on the underside of the bee’s abdomen, secrete flakes of wax scales which are used to build the wax comb. Bees work together to produce and form the comb that eventually becomes the pantry for storing pollen and honey and the nursery for raising their young. Bees must consume at least eight pounds of honey to metabolize one pound of wax.
5 . What are warning colors?
Yellow and black stripes are nature’s warning colors. Like many wasps and bees, these highly visible markings warn other animals that the insect can be dangerous. Many harmless flies, called fly mimics, have adopted these colors to fool predators into thinking they may be able to sting.
6 . Describe the stinger.
The stinger is used by the bee only for defense. The end of the worker bee stinger is barbed and shaped like a fishhook, so it can penetrate skin but not be easily removed. When a bee stings, its stinger and attached venom sac is torn from her abdomen, and she will die shortly afterward. Honey bees are not naturally aggressive and are reluctant to sting unless they feel that they, or their nest, are threatened. The shaft of the stinger is a modified ovipositor (egg-laying structure) and is therefore only found in worker bees. Connected to the stinger is a venom sac, which holds a mixture of protein chemicals (the venom) and alarm chemicals. These proteins can quickly cause a painful localized reaction, which can be severe to life-threatening in highly sensitive individuals. When a bee stings, the barbed shaft of the stinger is left behind, along with the venom sac. An attached muscle continues to pump venom through the stinger, even after it has been disconnected from the bee. For this reason, a bee stinger should be removed immediately by scraping it, and not by pinching it, which can forcibly inject more venom into the skin. The queen bee’s ovipositor is not barbed, and is used for egg-laying, but she can sting rival queens and occasionally will sting a careless beekeeper if she is mishandled.
7 . Can a headless bee still coordinate the complicated behavior of stinging? How and why?
There are multiple nerve centers in the honey bee different from the brain and each nerve center controls specific functions. There is a nerve center that controls the stinger apart from the brain, so yes, a headless (brainless) honey bee can still sting.
8 . What is the difference between the stinger in the worker bee versus the queen?
The worker stinger has barbs whereas the queen bee’s stinger has no barbs. The worker dies after stinging but the queen does not. This is because the queen’s stinger is not barbed, hence does not stay embedded.
9 . Can you think of a biological purpose to have the stinger and venom sac remain in its victim?
So that the alarm chemical stays and alerts other bees to the site of the threat.