The ability to sting, coupled with great mobility, makes bees and wasps the most feared of all insects. Bee and wasp stings cause several human deaths in the United States each year. Auto accidents may be triggered when drivers are distracted by the presence of a bee or wasp inside the vehicle. Wasps can sting repeatedly, but bees sting only once.
Bees have a barbed stinger that remains in the victim's skin tissue.
When the bee moves or is brushed away, the stinger is pulled from the bee's body along with the venom sac, which continues to pump venom into the victim. The bee dies after this one sting. Only female bees and wasps have stingers. Queens are responsible for nest establishment and egg laying. In most species, only one queen is present during most of the season.