[AG-EQ] Insects: bees and wasps

[Tracy Carcione]

I appear to have developed friendly relations with bees, too.  My bumblebee friends adore my passionflowers, but, so long as I give them a respectful distance, they don’t bother me.  I used to step on bees sometimes, and naturally get stung, so now I usually wear shoes when I’m wandering through the grass.
The early bees are out here, buzzing around the spring flowers, and I am very happy to hear them.
Tracy


Sent from Mail for Windows 10

From: Jewel via AG-EQ
Sent: Saturday, April 18, 2020 10:43 PM
To: nzbg; blindlikeme at yahoogroups.com; Agricultural and Equestrean Division List; Gayle; Deslie
Cc: Jewel
Subject: [AG-EQ] Insects: bees and wasps

I don't know if I have told you that, potentially, aggressive insects and I appear to have an 
amicable association, and being without  that knowledge, I will relate the following.
I have been stung only twice by bees and on both occasions, the stinging was, in the bee's eyes 
anyway, richly deserved.
The first was when I stepped on one and the other was when I was washing my hands and, unbeknown to 
me, a bee was taking a zizz in the handbasin and took some exception to having a stream of water 
descend upon its innocent head, and now for the occasions when they:  wasps/bees could have stung 
me, but didn't!
#1:  This was when I was a boarder at the Foundation.
One of the house mistresses, Miss Whitehall, for some reason, arranged for me to spend the term 
holidays with friends of hers, Doug and Elsie Wood who were dairy farmers in South Aucklan:  kouku 
or a name similar to that.
One day, Mrs Wood had given us all, her family and me, some  jam sandwiches which attracted the 
wasps.  One flew,  not "over the cuckoo's nest" but up inside my felt jacket, and I am sure must 
have been rather disconvovulated when everything, suddenly, went dark.  I am sure that its confusion 
would have caused it to retaliate by stinging something, but the something that it stung was not me. 
I assume that it was the jacket.
#2:  We, the Blanch family, were holidaying in Picton and, one day, Dad hired a rowing boat from the 
motelier and we went for a picnic around the point to another bay.  When it was lunchtime , Mum gave 
us all some chocolate and, before you could count to 100, we were, well, not * we, but the rest of 
the gang, were surrounded by wasps, the little darlings having picked up the smell of chocolate 
which, at that time of the year, was an attractant:  and had come down from the bush in a cloud: 
note:  wasps are seasonal in what scents attract them and this was their sweet period, chocolate/jam 
etc while later in the year it will be protein:  meat etc etc.
Anyway, even though I had chocolate too, not a wasp came near me!!!
#3:  When I was a student at Epsom Girls' Grammar School, one lunchtime, I was eating yet another 
jam sandwich and a wasp came along and touched down beside my finger, but with one * gentle puff 
from me, it took off, making no protest about the fierce gale that had hit it and robbed it of its 
meal.
#4:  When I came to live in Gore, for some weeks, every morning when I went out to the barn to milk 
my goats, I was welcomed by a bee that from its deep hum I assumed was a bumble.
After some weeks:  remember that the life of a bee is short, it welcomed me, as usual, and then, as 
I was seated on the edge of the stancheon milking the goat, along it came and passed right over my 
hand, and I swear that I felt its wings touch it:  it was as though it was a ceremonial flypast and 
this was its farewill salute as I never saw it again.
#5:  One night, my fan heater in the utility room caught on fire and, after leaping out of bed, and 
seizing the blazing heater:  how I didn't get incinnerated by the melting plastic, fortunate 
happenstance and Fred only know, I got it into the kitchen sink and drowned the flames.
I than went back to the scene of the blaze and felt around on the carpet to ascertain that I hadn't 
missed anything, when I picked up something that felt like a tiny little coil or something that 
seemed to be vibrating in my hand.
Having not the slightest clue as to what it could be, I dropped it into the sink too.
Next morning, I put my hand back into the sink and the vibrating coil which turned out to be a 
bumble bee bit me.  It did not sting, but appeared to bite me with jaws or a sort of beak:  and to 
bite me it still had to be alive, but badly burned.
I felt that if I called for veterinary assistance, veterinary assistance would not be forthcoming, 
so I put it outside, so if it were to die, which seemed inevitable, it would do so in its own 
environment.
#6:  Lastly, I took the large flower of a Jerusalem artichoke into my hand, and, once again,  felt 
the familiar vibration of a buzzing bee.  NO  STING:  NO BITE this time!!!

        Jewel   !  ; 


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