Alarm Pheromone
Lexikon
When stinging, a bee releases an alarm pheromone at the base of her sting and from the mandibular glands, a chemically complex mixture of dozens of scent compounds.
When stinging, a bee releases an alarm pheromone at the base of her sting and from the mandibular glands, a chemically complex mixture of dozens of scent compounds. Its main component is considered to be isopentyl acetate, also called isoamyl acetate, a substance with a smell reminiscent of bananas that is characteristic for beekeepers. The scent clings to the spot that was stung and marks the attacker, so to speak, as a target for further stings.
Other guard bees nearby respond to this signal with increased defensiveness; they direct themselves specifically at the marked spot and become more aggressive overall. In this way a single sting can quickly turn into a coordinated defensive attack by several bees, especially when many guards are standing near the entrance.
For day-to-day work with the colony this means: after a sting, you should move away from the entrance as quickly as possible and not treat the affected spot directly in front of the hive, because the scent attracts more bees there. Smoke from the smoker effectively masks the alarm pheromone and calms the colony, which is why careful beekeepers prefer to use a little more smoke than too little with nervous colonies. A common mistake is simply to leave squashed or crushed bees lying around, because injured bees also release alarm pheromone and can alarm a colony unnecessarily.