We have a ditch with water running through it year-round about 50 feet from our house.
The ditch is only about 3 feet wide, with just a few inches of water running in it.
Right out on the edge of the bank on the opposite side there is a spot about 3 feet in diameter with about 15-20 holes in it leading in to the nest itself.
The bees are continually buzzing (even at night) just above the ground and if it's really warm, they extend out and up!
How could anyone deal with a nest of this magnitude! :o :-\
There is a running thread on yellow jackets. A search will bring it up. (maybe the admins will put this post with it)
I learned about SevinR insecticide dust there and it was VERY effective with one dusting
of a hard-to-reach nest of yellow jackets.
https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,32308.msg886003.html#msg886003
and another by MM
https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,60107.msg878526.html#msg878526
Chuck, maybe you could borrow a couple of armadillos from our texas brethren. They will dig out the nest to get at the grubs. Kinda hard to sting through mother nature's armor plate.
I've used my tank sprayer on the back of my 4 wheeler on yellow jackets, mix a small batch of water with enough Blue Dawn dishwashing liquid to tun the water blue. Add liquid after the water to keep bubbling down. It will stop them in their tracks, and the power sprayer shoots 15-20 feet in a tight stream.
My bud uses an old fire extingusher, one that sprayed foam, added a schrader valve to pressure it up with a little air. Fill with water and the blue dawn, top off with a bit of air and that thing squirts 35 feet out.
Thanks Stump. What many folks do not realize is that insects don't have lungs, nor do they transport oxygen through their circulatory systems. Instead, insects use a series of tubes called a tracheal system to perform gas exchange throughout the body. When air reaches the tracheole, oxygen dissolves into the tracheole liquid. Through simple diffusion, oxygen then moves to the living cells and carbon dioxide enters the tracheal tube. Carbon dioxide, a metabolic waste, exits the body through the spiracles.
That being said, insects are easily killed as Stump mentioned in the above post. Soapy water provides the surfactant action to completely cover and suffocate them.
Chemicals such as Sevin are designed for chewing insects. It kills them by entering their digestive system.
QuoteChemicals such as Sevin are designed for chewing insects. It kills them by entering their digestive system.
:) However it works, it was very quick and effective on the yellow jackets. The next morning, and thereafter, they are/were gone.
Sevin is the chemical used on crops that apparently had a big effect on the honey bee population, if I read correctly. Led to controlled use and restrictions as a crop insecticide.
Correct, Sevin was designed and targeted for chewing insects, but there is collateral damage to many unintended victims.
Many folks do not realize how dependent our food supply is on honeybees.
Found a big yellow jacket nest near the base of a big leaf maple today. Appears it has been partially dug out by a bear. In the case of yellow jackets are they after honey or the bees themselves?
Yellow jackets do not make honey. Apparently the bear was after the larva inside of the nest, but they should all be hatched out now.
I just learned that a neighbor kid was killed by yellow jackets. He was mowing the grass. Probably would have been the last time for the season. :(
Den-
Was this an overwhelming allergic response to multiple stings? That is so sad.
Deffinately a sad story Den.
I have a son who is highly alergic to bee stings.
He carries an "epi-pen" (sp), as far as I know, he's never had to use it!
Sad indeed. We are building a band stage at a friends house. He took a sip from his sprite in a cup which had a straw. There was a yellow jacket in the straw and he sucked into his mouth and it stung him on the tongue. OUCH. bg
Quote from: Chuck White on October 03, 2012, 05:13:23 PM
Deffinately a sad story Den.
I have a son who is highly alergic to bee stings.
He carries an "epi-pen" (sp), as far as I know, he's never had to use it!
Glad to hear your son carries his epi-pen. So many folks that are allergic do not, and can get i real trouble if they are stung. Even if you have the epi, and use it, you should still go to the emergency room ASAP. By ambulance would be a good idea. The epi will only last so long, and if your reaction is severe, it will return once the epi wears off.
Every 7 years your body chemistry changes, and you could possibly develop an alergic reaction to something that did not affect you in the past. Whenever anyone gets stung, I'm very watchful of them until I'm satisfied that they are not having an severe reaction. Once the airway closes, not even a medic can get a tube in to open it up.
Did I mention I'm an EMT? :D
The boy had been stung before with no allergic reaction. This time multiple stings caused anaphylaxis. It must be devastating for his parents.
Quote from: Chuck White on September 17, 2012, 09:26:14 AM
Right out on the edge of the bank on the opposite side there is a spot about 3 feet in diameter with about 15-20 holes in it leading in to the nest itself.
The bees are continually buzzing (even at night) just above the ground and if it's really warm, they extend out and up!
So are they bees or yellow jackets? What you're describing sounds more like a ground bee colony. I've seen literally hundreds of holes in the side of a bare hill with bees swarming all around. They are very similar to carpenter bees, but smaller. If they are indeed ground bees, I would leave them alone unless you have small children around or someone who is allergic to stings. They are effective pollinators and they are far less aggressive than yellow jackets.
Of course, if they are in fact yellow jackets, then spray away! I hate yellow jackets!
I'm pretty sure these are yellow jackets!