Yellowjackets are pretty stupid

[[DHT]Osiris]

You killed carpenter bees? What an asshole.

No kidding, carpenter bees are basically useful flies. The drones cannot sting, only the queens.

 

[Red Squirrel]

This works good too:

 

[Ichinisan]

No kidding, carpenter bees are basically useful flies. The drones cannot sting, only the queens.

Why are people defending these destructive bees? Carpenter bees bore holes in my porch.

I tried to put one outside a few weeks ago and it stung my finger right through the paper towel I was trying to use to grab it.

It didn't work out well for the carpenter bee.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

Why are people defending these destructive bees? Carpenter bees bore holes in my porch.

I tried to put one outside a few weeks ago and it stung my finger right through the paper towel I was trying to use to grab it.

It didn't work out well for the carpenter bee.

They do more good for the environment than bad for your porch. If you're positive it was a carpenter bee rather than a bumblebee, then you won the prize and had a queen in your house.

 

[Scarpozzi]

You killed carpenter bees? What an asshole.

Why's that? My neighbor has a wooden fence behind my out building. They're basically destroying all the lumber in the fence and starting to build nests on the corners of my house and destroying the fascia boards. Have you ever seen the damage they can do when they run the length of a board? They're almost as bad as termites.

 

[CZroe]

They do more good for the environment than bad for your porch.

Like what?

Carpenter bees are pests and there is no shortage of them for pollination to continue unabated.

If you're positive it was a carpenter bee rather than a bumblebee, then you won the prize and had a queen in your house.

Pestulent carpenter bees in the southeastern USA don't live in colonies (multiple solitary or mating pair nests right by each other) and, thus, all of them are queens and drones (no workers). If anything, "queens" are more common (depending on the species). Not much of a "lottery."

Carpenter bees are destructive, common, and they sting. Plenty of reason to kill them when they start boring into your house, tool shed, etc. As much as people say they aren't aggressive, they are. They just aren't aggressive in the way that worker bees sacrifice themselves for the good of the colony/nest. These girls get in your face and fly circles around you to harass you then they will act like you provoked them if you do something they don't like, possibly escalating the encounter to an attack. They are jerks.

 

[Ichinisan]

They do more good for the environment than bad for your porch. If you're positive it was a carpenter bee rather than a bumblebee, then you won the prize and had a queen in your house.

Bumblebees are rare around here. They're all carpenter bees. Much bigger than bumblebees. They seem to prefer clover and they bore holes everywhere.

As far as I know, they don't do colonies or have "queens" - right?

Even so, I don't know why a queen would be a "prize" when it comes to carpenter bees.

 

[Scarpozzi]

Bumblebees are rare around here. They're all carpenter bees. Much bigger than bumblebees. They seem to prefer clover and they bore holes everywhere.

As far as I know, they don't do colonies or have "queens" - right?

Even so, I don't know why a queen would be a "prize" when it comes to carpenter bees.

My understanding is that carpenter bees mate around April (which is why they're EVERYWHERE once it warms up). You'll see the males sneak up behind females and mate mid-air. Once the females are ready to lay eggs, they bore a hole into wood and if it's a board in a house or building or fence, they'll often make a 90 degree turn and bore a tunnel the length of the wood for a certain distance from the hole. They'll lay their eggs there and then create a cell wall and leave food for their young to eat once they hatch.

Bumblebees vs carpenter bees....Carpenter Bees have larger bodies and a smooth, shiny backside and aggressively buzz you because they're territorial. (despite their lack of stinging power). Bumblebees (those sweet ladies) are fuzzy all over.

 

[Ichinisan]

My understanding is that carpenter bees mate around April (which is why they're EVERYWHERE once it warms up). You'll see the males sneak up behind females and mate mid-air. Once the females are ready to lay eggs, they bore a hole into wood and if it's a board in a house or building or fence, they'll often make a 90 degree turn and bore a tunnel the length of the wood for a certain distance from the hole. They'll lay their eggs there and then create a cell wall and leave food for their young to eat once they hatch.

Bumblebees vs carpenter bees....Carpenter Bees have larger bodies and a smooth, shiny backside and aggressively buzz you because they're territorial. (despite their lack of stinging power). Bumblebees (those sweet ladies) are fuzzy all over.

I was stung by an obvious carpenter bee very recently. It didn't hurt for very long and didn't swell, but I figure that's mostly because it was the very tip of my finger and it was stinging me straight through a paper towel, so it probably didn't penetrate the skin very deep.

 

[Shmee]

I like bees and wasps. They are cute little insects. You guys are just crazy...

 

[sdifox]

I like bees and wasps. They are cute little insects. You guys are just crazy...

Oh no, they stung you in the spinal cord didn't they?

 

[Shmee]

Hehe. No actually I rarely get stung, I just leave them alone or treat them nicely and they don't give me trouble.

 

[sdifox]

Hehe. No actually I rarely get stung, I just leave them alone or treat them nicely and they don't give me trouble.

Bees I don't mind. Wasp kill on sight.

 

[Captante]

I took to the carpenter bees on my property with a tennis racket