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Arthropods and Human Skin pp 135–158Cite as

Hymenoptera Stings

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Abstract

This large order of over 100 000 species (Davies 1967) includes a wide variety of species, most of which are harmless to man. Table 10.1. shows the main subdivisions of the order. Only the Aculeata class contains species which are injurious to man. All ant species and many wasp and bee species have a social Organisation which is often highly developed, but many other bees and wasps live a solitary existence. Some of the solitary forms may attack man, but most assaults, whether accidental or deliberate, come from the social forms. A very great deal has been written about these creatures, espeeially honeybees. Only a bare outline of morphology is given here, together with those features of biology, habits and habitat which may be relevant to the produetion of lesions. For an excellent account of Hymenoptera and their association with man in one way or another the reader is referred to Ebeling (1975).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Glasgow, UK

    John O’Donel Alexander MB, ChB, FRCP (Glasgow) (Emeritus Consultant Dermatologist, Glasgow Royal Infirmary and Lately Honorary Clinical Lecturer in Dermatology)

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  1. John O’Donel Alexander MB, ChB, FRCP (Glasgow)
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O’Donel Alexander, J. (1984). Hymenoptera Stings. In: Arthropods and Human Skin. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-1356-0_10

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