Ever wondered what insects might have the most painful stings?
You may be thinking, and there is no clear answer. Because there's no way to really rank the pain of all insect stings without being stung by all the insects, and no one is going to do that, right?
Dr. Justin O Schmidt, a retired entomologist from Arizona, USA. Over the years, he has sampled and documented stings from about 150 species of hymenoptera (wasps, bees, hornets and ants). He then used this information to create an authoritative scale and ranking system for insect sting pain, the Schmidt Pain Index.
Dr. Justin O Schmidt
The index rates the intensity of pain caused by stings from zero to four.
0. No pain
1. The pain is so mild that it does not constitute a real deterrent
2. Pain
3. Severe pain
4. Traumatic pain
Now, I silently wrote down in my mind Dr. Schmidt, who was savoring pain for science.
Now let's take a look at the ten most painful insects in the world, starting with the least painful.
1. Sweat bee
Sweat bees, though like other bees, feed on nectar but are attracted to the salts in human sweat.
The sting of the sweat wasp is a fairly mild sensation.
2. Fire ant
There are about 300 species of fire ants in the world, and many species are called red ants. These small ants, between 2-6 millimeters in size, make up for this with unpleasant stinging, which is where the name "fire" comes from.
The stinging method of ants is to grab with their powerful jaws and inject venom. A sting is a slight pain that causes a raised red lump. However, most of the time there will be multiple bites, causing noticeable pain and increasing the likelihood of infection.
3. Bullhorn acacia ant
The Mesoamerican acacia ant is an excellent example of the symbiotic relationship between trees and ants. Ants protect trees from other insects, and in return, they get a place to live and a source of food. They live in large thorns that grow on bullhorn thorn trees.
The Acacia Oxhorn is highly aggressive and protects trees by attacking animals of all sizes. Although ants themselves are small, their spines are very strong, causing prolonged burning and tingling sensations.
4. Bald-faced hornet
The mere name Bumblebee scares a lot of people, but this guy isn't actually a real Bumblebee, but a monochromatic white-spotted Bumblebee that has been found throughout North America.
These wasps become particularly active in late summer. Its stings are quite painful, and it is used over and over again without stinginess.
5. Wasp (wasp)
Wasps are also known as "ants" or "horse bees". Females have a powerful long stinging needle on their bodies, and when they encounter attacks or unfriendly disturbances, they will attack in groups, which can cause allergic reactions and toxic reactions, and in severe cases, can lead to death.
Bees die after using their thorns, but bees die after using their thorns.
6. Honey bee
Bees are flying eusocial insects that feed on pollen and nectar and brew and store honey, using beeswax to build long-term colony nests. The most famous of these bees is the Western Honey Bee (Apis mellifera), which has been domesticated to provide honey products and pollinate crops.
Bees are calm about stinging, but are very defensive about their nests and honey. Unfortunately, when they sting, they are left with stinging needles, as well as a portion of the internal organs, including the venom sac that is still twitching. This is an unpleasant death for bees, but it is also very painful for people who are stung.
The infamous African "killer" bee (Apis mellifera scutellata) is a subspecies of bees. Although they produce more honey, they are highly aggressive. Reports show that they will chase the victims for more than 1.6 kilometers and remain angry for days to come.
7. Red harvester ant
Native to the southern United States, the red harvest ant is a large ant with a strong jaw that is used to knock seeds open. Their nests are easy to spot because there will be a hole in a small mound. These ants are known for destroying large areas of vegetation around their nests.
It is said that the red harvest ant is as effective as the venom of the world's most poisonous snake. Fortunately, the dose is very small, and to kill an adult in this way, about 1,000 bites are required. Given the intense pain of a single sting, no one will stay around them for long! That's why its little name is "Little Snake".
8. Paper wasp
Wasps belong to a different branch of the wasp family. The species is found throughout Europe and introduced to North America, where they can replace local wasp species with little effort. Nests can often be found under eaves or in the attic and are characterized by small open hives containing larvae. Wasps are not as aggressive as some wasps. However, once in attack mode, it will be repeated, painfully stinging.
9. Tarantula Hawk
The desert spider bee is simply a nightmare. It is 5 cm long and is one of the largest wasps. The spine alone is 7 mm long, which can be said to be a flying syringe!
Desert spider bees can often be seen perched on flowers and drink nectar because that is its food. However, female wasps occasionally eat spider flesh, and instead of ordinary spiders, they seek out the largest and most hairy spiders around them.
After catching the spider, they paralyze the spider with a thorn, then drag the spider back to the specially prepared nest and lay an egg in the spider's abdomen.
After a few days, when the eggs hatch, they gulp down the offal of the spider that is still alive.
10. Bullet ant
After the bullet ants, it's hard to imagine anything worse. I mean, that score is 4, where to find 4 points or more, the limit of human suffering. A bumblebee as big as an eagle? Well, it's not. It is an ant from the forests of South and Central America - the bullet ant.
Bullet ants can be more than 2.5 centimeters in size, making them one of the largest ants in the world. Because of the pain of being hit by a bullet, you will feel the pain of being hit by a bullet, and you will be called a bullet ant.
A grown man began crying after being stung by a bullet ant. The pain is described as "wave after wave of burning, throbbing, endless pain that lasts up to 24 hours."
During the coming-of-age ceremony of the Satere-Mawe people, who live in the Amazon rainforest of Brazil, bullet ants are placed in gloves and must be worn for 10 minutes, and this is not a one-off. In order to become a warrior, boys have to do this multiple times.
Text: Xiao Ao
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