A bee with no bottom

[Beacon Woods]

Strangest thing I've ever seen (well, maybe not the strangest...) Two days ago my husband and I were retrieving a swarm about 20 feet above a couple of our hives and after I lowered him down from the tractor loader and drove him (and the swarm on the branch) to the location where I had set up the nuc, I noticed that there was a strange looking bee flying around the nuc box. It had beautiful wings, a nice head, a normal second section but little to no "bottom". (Can't remember what all the parts are called ). :) There was just this little thread like thing where you would normally expect to see the stripes and stinger of the bee. I looked carefully at all the other bees and they seemed to be just fine. No wing problems and no apparent mites. What's up? I did squish her though. Anything I should be concerned about? Suggestions? I closed the nuc up with a "queen excluder" so she wouldn't fly away and don't plan on opening up to see how everyone is doing until tomorrow (storms today). Should I be looking for something in particular? Thanks as always!

Chris

[alpha6]

Maybe the bee was bad worker and got an ***** chewing by the queen right before you got there. :eek:

[MCC]

I saw a bee like that yesterday stuck on my sock and thought that it had tried to sting me and lost its bottom and just hadn't died yet. It was strange looking. I squished it too. Are these the deformities that they talk about with Varroa mites or is that something else?

[Dr.Wax]

I saw a bee like that yesterday stuck on my sock and thought that it had tried to sting me and lost its bottom and just hadn't died yet.

That would be my guess although I haven't personally observed this so far. When they sting their guts are pulled out along with the stinger so they can continue reflexively pumping more venom into their target. That may be the "string" seen.

[MollySue'sHoney]

Sometimes a bee's abdomen will be ripped off in manipulation or some other activity. The poor thing will live for a short while. This is most likely what you saw. The deformation from varroa has to do primarily with deformed wings.

[megank]

Ditto with those who think you say a worker with a severed abdomen. In the insect world, especially ants bees and wasps, although tramatic, losing ones abdomen isn't a quick death.

If the severed part isn't too tramatic, the victim can live for days until it starves to death.

[deknow]

i've never tried this, but i've been told that if you feed colored sugar water to such bees (individually, not the whole hive), you can see them slurp it up, and see it flow freely out the back.

deknow

[b_z_genius]

I think what you are seeing is a fly. Can't remember what they are called but I see them here and there in the fields and on privet blooms.

[dug_6238]

I saw one of these with a swarm that I collected this weekend too. It was very cleanly severed off, no remnant of any kind hanging off. Poor girl. Wasn't doing so well by the time I picked her up.