Got Stung By A Yellow Jacket

[JohnR7]

3 hours ago, Debp said:

It was a Bumblebee, I think.

If the Bumblebees give me any problems I will swat them with a tennis racket and they will leave me alone after that. There are a lot of them on the flowers in the garden. I do what i do and they do what they do and we leave each other alone. 

Edited September 9, 2020 by JohnR7

[Marathoner]

Don't feel bad. I worked in the pest control business for a few years so at one time I was the fellow folks would call to eliminate their colonies. I was never stung, not once. However, knowing how easily yellow jackets are confused with honeybees I would always ensure that I wasn't being called out for a bee colony. I knew a few professional beekeepers who were experienced with relocating honeybee colonies... I would never exterminate a bee colony. They're far too beneficial. 
 

Edited September 9, 2020 by Marathoner

[Marathoner]

2 hours ago, JohnR7 said:

If the Bumblebees give me any problems I will swat them with a tennis racket and they will leave me alone after that. There are a lot of them on the flowers in the garden. I do what i do and they do what they do and we leave each other alone. 

They're amazing creatures. A bumblebee works harder than a honeybee and is more durable (they live longer), but their colony is slipshod compared to the precision of the honeybee hive. Individually, bumblebees collect more pollen but their method of honey storage leaves something to be desired. They construct "pots" to store honey in but don't regulate the temperature in order to preserve the honey. That's what honeybee workers do: thousands of workers position themselves on the comb vibrating their wings, regulating the internal temperate of the hive at the proper threshold to preserve the honey they make.   

Edited September 9, 2020 by Marathoner

[Dennis1209]

7 hours ago, Marathoner said:

Don't feel bad. I worked in the pest control business for a few years so at one time I was the fellow folks would call to eliminate their colonies. I was never stung, not once. However, knowing how easily yellow jackets are confused with honeybees I would always ensure that I wasn't being called out for a bee colony. I knew a few professional beekeepers who were experienced with relocating honeybee colonies... I would never exterminate a bee colony. They're far too beneficial. 
 

Speaking of which...

Since I've retired and moved to the country, I've planted a garden most years. Keeping a sharp eye on my garden and working it, you start paying attention to certain things pertaining to its health and production. Much of what I plant and my fruit trees require pollination of the blooming flowers. 

The first year down here with my first garden, when every vegetable and fruit was in bloom, you would hear the loud buzz from all those bees doing their work and business, you couldn't count them. Over the years I've seen less and less bee's pollinating my garden. This year I could count on one hand the number of bee's I seen going from flower to flower. The production of my fruit trees this year was almost non-existent. 

I hear bee populations are one of the indicators in the condition of the environment, pollution and insecticides. The neighbors around me use GMO seed and pesticides for their corn, soybean and other crops. I can say with observation and certainty, the bee population in my area has been drastically reduced [with the exception of yellow jackets and carpenter bee's]; even a big reduction of wasp's that always made their nests in annual and predictable places around here. Previously I've had many wasp nests in various locations around here; this year I have not seen one?

Is my observation of the bee population locally, it has all but disappeared. Has anyone noticed the same thing in your areas?

I can't speak about the pros and cons of GMO seed and farming practices; other than to say it's the overwhelming choice for farmers, but. Many organic fruits and vegetables require pollination, and the biggest pollinator are bee's. If the bee population nationally is drastically reduced or eliminated, it would be impossible to pollinate manually by hand for the production of food needed. Could the loss of bee's be a contributing factor to a famine???  <- notice that's a question.

[LadyKay]

10 hours ago, JohnR7 said:

If the Bumblebees give me any problems I will swat them with a tennis racket and they will leave me alone after that. There are a lot of them on the flowers in the garden. I do what i do and they do what they do and we leave each other alone. 

I like bumble bees. They have never given me any issues.  Honey bees are nice. They have landed on me and when they discovered I wasn't a flower, they flew away.  But yellow jackets. You just look at them and they get mad. Kind of like some people I know. 

[luigi]

19 hours ago, LadyKay said:

I got stung by a yellow jacket at the grocery store. I just wanted to share that. I am not allergic and have been stung by yellow jackets, honey bees, and wasp numerous times in my life.   So  I am sure I will live. But dang that thing hurt!  

I also got stung just beneath my eye when working in my yard two days back. Another interesting thing about that day is that I read an article stating that medical researchers in Western Australia have found that the venom from honey bees stops breast cancer. Not that I have breast cancer, but an interesting coincidence, being stung and the reading the article on the same day.

[LadyKay]

8 hours ago, Marathoner said:

They're amazing creatures. A bumblebee works harder than a honeybee and is more durable (they live longer), but their colony is slipshod compared to the precision of the honeybee hive. Individually, bumblebees collect more pollen but their method of honey storage leaves something to be desired. They construct "pots" to store honey in but don't regulate the temperature in order to preserve the honey. That's what honeybee workers do: thousands of workers position themselves on the comb vibrating their wings, regulating the internal temperate of the hive at the proper threshold to preserve the honey they make.   

I like to sit and watch the bumblebee collect pollen. Some people are afraid of them and freak out when they see them.  But bumblebees do not seem to be interested in people. And they help the flowers. Honey bees are becoming endangered. We need honey bees to pollinate our plants for food.  As a kid I use to lay on the lawn where the clover was and watch the honey bees fly to each clover. I was never afraid of them. I knew as long as I did not step on them they would leave me alone. I see God's hand in all these things. How it all fits together for the good. 

[LadyKay]

@Chicken coop2  You keep changing your pic. I don't know who you are anymore. Are you still a chicken? 

[Henry_iain]

Looks like enough food for a big party

[Henry_iain]

The sentence was finished we are not required to add full stops.