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Bee Cautions
Bees, Wasps, Yellow jackets...
'winging
and stinging' their way into your home.
 Bees
in all of their varieties are most often quite beneficial
to nature and man. The honeybee, best known
for producing sweet honey, and its distant cousin
the bumblebee, are also incredibly valuable as pollinators
of flowers and fruit trees.
Wasps are
scavengers and predators, not pollinators. They
often prey on other less beneficial insects. The
Wasp family, unlike bees, do not have body hairs
or specialized structures for gathering and carrying
pollen.
Wasp and bee stings can be life
threatening if one is allergic to the venom.
The presence of a nest in or near the home should
be a cause for immediate concern and professional
assistance should be sought at once.
**See
Bee Cautions Section
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Honey Bees
 The
vast majority of adult honeybees in any colony are
female worker bees. The job of worker bees are tending
and feeding young bees (larvae), making honey, making
royal jelly and beebread to feed larvae, producing
wax, cooling the hive by fanning wings, gathering
and storing pollen, nectar and water, guarding the
hive, building, cleaning and repairing the comb,
and feeding and taking care of the queen and drones.
When a bee colony starts to become too crowded,
some of the individuals split off to form a new
colony. This activity, called swarming, occurs when
part of the colony breaks off with the old queen
in search of another place to call home. The bees
engorge themselves on honey reserves before leaving
to have sufficient energy to make it to a new location.
There can be multiple swarms from one hive, since
new queens can also emerge and fly off with part
of the worker force.
 Bee
swarms should not be killed indiscriminately.
Bees are beneficial insects, helping pollinate
flowers and vegetables. Unless a swarm is causing
a distinct problem and cannot be tolerated, it should
be left alone. Most honeybee swarms will leave a
resting site within a few hours. Eliminating possible
points of entry to buildings and removing other
potential nest sites is the best way to prevent
serious problems with bees around structures.
The average worker honeybee makes 1/12th
of a teaspoon of honey in their lifetime.
Most honeybee swarms will leave a resting site
within a few hours. A swarm or hive of bees can
be destroyed through physical removal (vacuuming)
or by using a pesticide (see Chemical Controls).
Either way, great care must be exercised because
any disturbance around a nest can cause multiple
stings. It is best to have a professional pest control
operator remove the hive.
Adequate protective
clothing and proper procedure can minimize problems
and stings.
It is important to wear protective
clothing when removing hives. Complete body coverage
is essential because bees can find even the smallest
exposed area.
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Bumble Bees
 The
bumblebee and her distant cousin the honeybee are
often confused, however, in comparison the "humble
bumble" is gentle and slow. As she trundles around
the garden collecting pollen and nectar she is quite
different to her streamlined relative who dashes
about everywhere. Even her body shape is different
as you can see from the pictures. The bumble is
round and furry and not at all like her more wasp-shaped
cousin. In fact, as you can see from the photo,
there are three kinds of bumblebee, the large Queen,
the smaller imperfectly formed female worker bee
and the tiny male or drone bee. All are seen at
different times of year. Only the Queen and the
worker bees have a sting.
Because
they live in small nests bumblebees never swarm
- so a nest near your home is not an immediate cause
for concern. Bumblebees are much less aggressive
than honeybees. Generally, they will not attack
a human at all, unless they sense a grave threat.
Don't wave your arms wildly in their presence, stand
quietly and once they smell you are not a flower
containing pollen, they will move gently away.
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Wasps
 Wasps
and hornets are prolific breeders. If you see them
in your flowers, garbage or picnic area there is
probably a nest close by. The two species most common
in the Hudson Valley area are Bald Faced Hornets
and Paper Wasps. Bald-faced hornets are actually
wasps. They are black with white or yellow stripes
around their thorax and abdomen. They're about one
inch long, can fly very fast and are aggressive.
Bald-faced hornets create a nest, which is grey
and round, and ranges from softball to beach ball
size. These nests are made from cellulose and are
quite strong. Likely nest sites include trees, shrubs
and around overhangs of buildings.
The
paper wasp builds clusters of hexagonal paper cells.
Mixing masticated wood pulp with adhesive saliva,
these paper nest cells act as larval nesting chambers
for the young wasps. The Chinese inventor of
paper was inspired by observing paper wasps.
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Yellow Jackets
 Nearly
everyone has been stung by an insect at one time
or another, an unpleasant experience that people
hope not to repeat; but for most people the damage
inflicted is only temporary pain. Only a very limited
portion of the population (one or two people out
of 1,000) is allergic or hypersensitive to bee or
wasp stings.
Most bees and wasps live solitary
lives, their behavior is more likely to be flight
than fight. Yellow jacket, bumblebee and honeybee
colonies have individuals whose task it is to defend
the nest. If the nest is disturbed, these individuals
will defend it vigorously. In addition, foraging
members of the colony will also sting if they are
disturbed or injured as they go about their activities.
Yellow jackets are much more liable to attack
than others wasps or hornets
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Carpenter Bees
 Carpenter
bees are large (18-20mm in length) and resemble
the bumblebee, except that the dorsal surface of
the abdomen only has yellow hairs on the first abdominal
segment, while the rest of the body is bare. Bumblebees
have yellow hairs on the other abdominal segments
as well.
 In
the late spring and early summer, homeowners often
notice large, black bees hovering around the outside
of their homes. These are probably carpenter bees
searching for mates and favorable sites to construct
their nests. Male carpenter bees are quite aggressive,
often hovering in front of people who are around
the nests. The males are quite harmless, however,
since they lack stingers. Female carpenter bees
can inflict a painful sting but seldom will unless
they are handled or molested.
Carpenter bee tunnels are about 4-6" long and 1/2"
in diameter. They frequently re-use old tunnels
for pollen storage and over-wintering chambers and
they prefer rotten or seasoned wood.
Hornets
Photo by:
Andrew
Parsley/Oxford Scientific Films
Hornet, name commonly
applied to the members of a group of social wasps
that make nests of papery material composed of chewed
plant foliage and wood. The nest is often surrounded
by a football-shaped paper envelope.
The bald-faced, or
white-faced, hornet, widely distributed throughout
North America, is about 3 cm (about 1.2 in) long
and is black with white markings on most of its
segments and on its face. Its gray nest is usually
suspended from a tree limb. Yellow jacket is a name
applied to a number of species that have extensive
yellow markings. Yellow jackets construct their
nests close to or under the ground; a single nest
may contain up to 15,000 individuals. Yellow jackets
are often found near humans, and their sting can
be serious for people sensitive to their venom,
or if a person is stung many times simultaneously.
The European hornet
first appeared in the eastern United States about
1850. This hornet is reddish brown streaked with
yellow and attains a length of more than 2.5 cm
(1 in). Its brown nest is built in hollow trees,
in rock crevices, or on human structures. Like the
smaller hornet species, it eats insects and their
larvae and ripe fruit.
In several hornet
species, no workers are produced. Instead the female
lays its eggs in the nests of other wasps, where
the eggs hatch and the young are fed.
Scientific
classification: Hornets belong to the family
Vespidae, of the order Hymenoptera. The bald-faced,
or white-faced, hornet is classified as Vespula
maculata. The European hornet is classified as Vespula
crabro.
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Bee Cautions
Bee Cautions Around your Home
-
Listen for buzzing indicating a new or swarm
of bees
-
Use care when entering sheds or outbuildings
where bees may nest
-
Examine work area before using lawn mowers,
weed cutters, and other power equipment
-
Examine Areas before tying up or penning pets
or livestock
-
Be alert when participating in all outdoor sports
and activities
-
Don't disturb a new hive or swarm - contact
a pest control company or an emergency response
organization
-
Teach children to be cautious and respectful
of all bees
-
Check with a doctor about bee sting kits and
procedures if sensitive to bee stings
-
Develop a safety plan for you home and yard
What To Do If Stung
-
Go quickly to a safe area
-
Remove stinger as soon as possible
-
Don't squeeze stinger; pressure will release
more venom
-
Scrape stinger out with fingernail, knife blade
or credit card
-
Wash sting area with soap and water like any
other wound
-
Apply ice pack for a few minutes to relieve
pain and swelling
-
Seek medical attention if breathing is troubled,
if stung numerous times or if allergic to bee
stings
-
Normal honey bees will not aggressively attack
as a group. If multiple bees are attacking,
assume that they will continue to attack and
act immediately to leave the area. CALL 911
to report all unusual bee activity.
-
Your Fire Department is equipped and trained
to perform rescue and first aid for bee attacks.
-
Move to a safe location In a house In a vehicle
with windows up Turn on air conditioning
-
If you cannot get inside of a safe location;
Run and continue running away from the bees
for at least 1/4 of a mile, more if possible
and do not stop if the bees are still chasing
you.
-
Do not try to hide in a swimming pool, the bees
will wait for you to surface.
-
If you locate a bee swarm; Move all people and
pets to a safe location. Dial 911 and report
the activity
-
If a person is under attack, encourage them
to run to a safe location, do not attempt to
rescue them as you will become a victim in need
of rescue
Swarming Bees
As a general rule, stay away from all honey
bee swarms and colonies. If bees are encountered,
get away quickly. While running away, try to protect
face and eyes as much as possible. Take shelter
in a car or building. Water or thick brush does
not offer enough protection. Do not stand and swat
at the bees; rapid motions will cause them to sting.
If attacked by bees, leave the area quickly and
find shelter in a building or car!
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