Hunting wasps

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I do not know if you already know this (you most probably will ) but wasps do not just use insects for protein, they also take rabbit and pigeon meat, and probably splattered road kill.

I have seen somewhere online a timelapse video of wasps stripping the carcass of a rat or pigeon (IIRC) down to the bare bones in a matter of hours.

 

[Millet]

I have seen somewhere online a timelapse video of wasps stripping the carcass of a rat or pigeon (IIRC) down to the bare bones in a matter of hours.

I have seen it with my current working eye balls,

 

[Fritillary]

I have seen it with my current working eye balls,

 

[viridens]

Have you caught a whiff of a 'meaty' wasp nest? They can stink out a loft or garage. I have had swarm calls which mentioned this smell and so saved further questioning.

I could never understand the Golden Syrup logo and Samson's riddle either....
What do you make of it? (The riddle, not the syrup!)

 

[Karol]

Not just whiffy but heavily contaminated with nasty bacteria. High risk of serious infestions from wasp stings cos unlike bee stings that are relatively clean, wasp stings can be a bit like being injected with pus.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I could never understand the Golden Syrup logo and Samson's riddle either....
What do you make of it? (The riddle, not the syrup!)

read your bible - then you'll get it

 

[viridens]

read your bible - then you'll get it

I read it, and I got it, but it didn't make sense.
I remember being fascinated by the story at Sunday school and by the picture on the syrup can, but I didn't understand why there was a bee colony in a carcase. I still don't. I think the tale must stem from the ancient belief that that bees were generated spontaneously from rotting flesh, see this article. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/columnists/christopherhowse/3559948/The-riddle-of-the-golden-syrup-tin.html
Maybe the ancients had observed wasps stripping carcases as posted above, and it was a case of wasp/bee confusion as is still common today?
This wouldn't explain Samson's honey, but then we are judging the veracity of stories in the bible, a whole different topic, and for a different forum.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I read it, and I got it, but it didn't make sense.

Probably makes more sense than a lot of the posts on here

 

[BeeJuice]

Don't recall mentioning anything about spring or summer. I've posted extensively on managing wasps during their sweet feeding phase and you are welcome to review those posts. There is a point just prior to wasps sweet feeding when there is a crescendo in their hunting behaviour where depending on all sorts of variables hives are placed at greatest risk. Being able to recognise when this happens will be the difference between losing and saving a hive. Best analogy I can think of is a tsunami. Doesn't happen very often but when it does it's usually too late to respond. Having an early tsunami warning system is invaluable.

I'm delighted that you've never had a 'tsunami' and I hope you never do. I have witnessed a hive torn apart by hunting wasps and everything goes - brood and adults alike with nothing left save pared off limbs. I also get to meet and help bee keepers from all over the country and am regularly called upon for help by bee keepers having problems with nuisance wasps. Thankfully as I've said, tsunamis are rare, as are to a slightly lesser extent beekeeper induced pheromone driven frenzied feeding attacks.

I'm also grateful for your post and your insights. My hives are currently under attacks by wasps so your post is both timely and informative. Thank you.

 

[Itchy]

Is it not also true that wasps predate honey bees for their sweet stomach contents?

 

[Karol]

It is Itchy and it is difficult for the lay person to distinguish between wasps hunting solitary bees for protein and sweet feeding wasps going after nectar laden honeybees.

This is where sweet based traps help as wasps going after nectar laden honeybees will also be attracted to sweet baited traps. The other subtle difference is that wasps going after nectar laden honeybees go after the abdomen only and frequently amputate the abdomen without killing the honeybee. It's quite distressing seeing lots of abdomenless honeybees walking around dying a slow death. When wasps are hunting honeybees for protein they will kill the honeybee and take the whole carcass paring off only the antennae, wings and legs and sometimes the head.

 

[Karol]

I read it, and I got it, but it didn't make sense.
I remember being fascinated by the story at Sunday school and by the picture on the syrup can, but I didn't understand why there was a bee colony in a carcase. I still don't. I think the tale must stem from the ancient belief that that bees were generated spontaneously from rotting flesh, see this article. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/columnists/christopherhowse/3559948/The-riddle-of-the-golden-syrup-tin.html
Maybe the ancients had observed wasps stripping carcases as posted above, and it was a case of wasp/bee confusion as is still common today?
This wouldn't explain Samson's honey, but then we are judging the veracity of stories in the bible, a whole different topic, and for a different forum.

I have a different take on this. We don't know how long after Sansom killed the lion that he returned to see bees inside the carcass. It is plausible that the carcass had been stripped of flesh and had dried out leaving nothing but a desiccated skeleton covered in a dry skin. A fur covered empty rib cage could well provide a suitable home for a hive to establish itself.

 

[maddydog]

I have a different take on this. We don't know how long after Sansom killed the lion that he returned to see bees inside the carcass. It is plausible that the carcass had been stripped of flesh and had dried out leaving nothing but a desiccated skeleton covered in a dry skin. A fur covered empty rib cage could well provide a suitable home for a hive to establish itself.

Heh that's what I thought when I read this thread. Will bore the missus later with the 'Samson and the Lion' logo