The other pictures are of the damage that the bee caused in the loft.
The other pictures are of the damage that the bee caused in the loft.
I wish :-)
Getting
I do, I've bee stung by a bee (or wasp I didn't see it well enough) that flew up a short sleeved shirt. It got trapped on the edge of my arm pit it, understandably it stung me in self defence. Not the bees fault and most definitely not an excuse to murder all bees within 100 yds of the house.
Are any of you allergic to the sting? If not. do you let your family out at all? They are at a much bigger risk of being *seriously* hurt or killed in a road accident than they are from being stung by a bee.
A bee sting isn't very pleasant but unless you are allergic not life threatening, stop being such a great big whoz.
I was walking past a hornet's nest last summer about 10 yards away and got stung - ended up in A&E.
Jonathan
We had a bumble-bee colony take hold in a gap in the steps up to the terrace. What they do is 'buzz' you, but once they know who you are, usually after the first 'buzzing', they ignore you totally. Lovely creatures, wish there were more about; they need all the help they can get.
What they do is 'buzz' you, but
totally. Lovely creatures, wish there
Same with wasps to be fair. I was up a ladder re-pointing some brickwork right next to their entry point. After the first hour they totally ignored me
What they do is 'buzz' you, but
totally. Lovely creatures, wish there
I can see that being true.
I believe there are three levels of security for bees at the hive out in the wild. In a military like fashion, there are perimeter guards that complete part of an arc of three circles, each increasing in diameter, that encompasses the hive.
If one guard of the outer perimeter does not show up, the two bees either side move to the missing guards patrol area. The inner rings move outwards to fill the missing patrol areas. Meanwhile, more bees leave the nest to fill missing areas and to increase security.
The bee who left the outer perimeter will give several warnings as to where he does not want you to go. It will intentionally block your path. The bee, in earnest, will fly at your eyes, even bumping into your forehead, rather than attack with force.
My standard thing with a wasp is to hit her _away_ from anyone - this seems to scare them and they fly off. My dad's trick was to clap his hands on them, then immediately open his hands, letting the dying wasp drop before she can sting. I never liked that approach :)
Andy
There is nothing like that in any published scientific literature although some 'managed' colonies have been known to defend their area at 100m or more away. Inbreeding and bad crosses are often the cause. Requeening or a litre of unleaded is the solution.
I and any visitors can walk up to my hives during most of the year and the bees couldn't give a rats ass as long as you are not blocking the flight line or making rapid movements. The only exception is for people that have been around livestock or dogs where they will sting repeatedly. For some reason they don't seem to bother cats or people that have been around them.
en people kill Bumble bees these are so placid you can put one on palm of y our hand and it won't sting you ... and so few in a colony killing just a f ew can wipe it out. I actually plant specific species of native wild flower s to attract them to my garden.
My son might have a different opinion. When he was about 5, he found one s truggling in his paddling pool. He thought he would be kind and rescue it by scooping it out with his hand at which point it stung him. Since then h e has steered clear of any flying/stinging insect :-)
Thanks for all the replies, folks. Having had a chance to watch further (I was amazed that it seems the bees can squeeze through the soffit vent
- I thought they were designed to prevent this) I'm as certain as I can be that these are bumble bees - I saw a couple with full pollen baskets.
So in the absence of any nuisance, I'm happy to leave alone ...
I'd also add to your exceptions thundery weather, and the end of the oilseed-rape flowering season, which in general make most honeybees somewhat "defensive" (the term beeks use for "nasty")
My bees were also placid as long as no thunderstorm was due ... then they would come at you rear end first.
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