Bees, Ants and Wasps Questions
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WASP
IDENTIFICATION:
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I ran across your web page below and
wanted to know information on this
particular wasp since I've found 2 in
our house. I would like to know their
behavior (i.e. do they bite or sting;
where do they live i.e. attic, house,
yard, nest, etc., are they aggressive
or not, etc.). If you can direct me to
a web page, or provide info on this
wasp, I would appreciate it. (Mon, 8
Jan 2001) LINK |
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Answer |
It looks like you refered us to one
of the orange and black Ichneumonid
wasps. These wasps are parasitic on
other insects- often Lepidoptera
larvae. They almost certainly got
caught in your house on accident. they
do not pose any sort of danger to you
or your family and can often be
desirable as a natural form of control
for plant pests. The largest members
of this group have some members which
can give a nasty sting. But they are
usually a 1/4 of an inch or larger and
fly at night. If you see one, just
leave it alone-they are not
aggressive. These wasps are also
solitary and do not form social
groups. |
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LOCAL
ANTS AND HOW TO CONTROL THEM:
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I like in Berkeley and am interested
in knowing about the different kinds
of ants we have here locally. In
addition, I'd like to discourage them
from coming in the house so much, and
would like suggestions on various
forms of control, including mild
insecticides and even
"commercial" treatment.
(Tue, 14 Nov 2000) |
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Answer |
A good starter book for learning
about local insects is called
"California Insects" by J.
Powell. It has a small ant section
that might be of interest. there are
about 200 species in California alone.
you are almost certainly delaing with
a non-native ant, the tiny, black
argentine ant in your house. In this
part of the state it is the most
likely to be a problem. the native
ants tend to be restricted to natural
areas. We can't endorse any particular
form of treatment, although we have
had success with some baits that get
the workers to bring the insecticide
back to the nest. Killing workers with
an insect spray is unlikely to have
any long-term effect since there can
be thousands of workers in a small
colony. |
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SWEAT
BEES & SEVERE ALLERGIC REACTIONS:
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My story begins with my severe
reaction to sweat bee stings. I had
been stung by a sweat bee or bees when
I had gone out for a walk on a hot
muggy day. This resulted in
anaphylactic shock!!! I didn't know it
at that time that I had an allergy to
any insects or bees of any type. The
trouble is , that it is hard to prove
because these bees are so small and
when I went to see an allergist, he
tested me for everything except sweat
bees.Then he told me that they
couldn't test for sweat bees because
they are very small and hard to find.
This had happened to me twice in last
three years, being stung by these
little insects. I guess what I am
trying to ask is, do you know if there
will be test developed in the future
for sweat bees. I am deathly afraid of
this happening to me again. I now have
to carry two epi pens with me incase
this happens again and try to get hold
of this little bee if I can , just to
bring it to the hospital if I can. I
would appreciate it if you can provide
me with any suggestions as to what I
can do, and or any information that
you think might be helpful for me
about these little bees. (Thu, 8 Feb
2001) |
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Answer |
We are sorry to hear of your problem
with sweat bees. typically sweat bees
are in the genus Lasioglossum, and
thier stinging behavior is defensive
when they are "swiped" while
gathering moisture. Check out a
general insect field guide or a book
on bees for more details about their
life histories...they are very
interesting creatures! For most people
the sting is sharp, but very brief and
harmless. You could catch some- they
are usually 3-15mm long and slightly
metallic. But it sounds like this
would be unwise given your reaction to
their stings. Perhaps a friend who is
not allergic could catch some for
you... Perhaps the easiest way would
be for your friend to go out with a
small jar and when the sweat bees land
on your friend they could trap a bee
alive in the jar. But this would not
be wise for you to do with your
allergy. We do not know of any current
tests specifically for sweat bee
allergies, perhaps they are similar to
the honeybee allergic reactions. Your
allergist would better be able to
refer you to that sort of research. |
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PREFERRED
BEES FOR ORCAHRD POLLINATION:
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I'd like to build some bee nests for
my orchard---I would like to know
which bees are preferred as
pollinators (carpenter or mason), what
are the species native to my area (the
Monterey Bay area), and where can I
get species-appropriate plans for
building nesting cavities? I have
found a few informative web sites on
mason bees but not for this area, and
I have a hunch (perhaps dead wrong)
that the species here are different,
and thus the nest sizes should be
different as well. (Tue, 27 Feb 2001) |
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Answer |
You are requesting a lot of detailed
information that few web sites will
likely have posted. We suggest that
you first find out which species of
bee pollonate the species of tree you
have in your orchard (this will vary
depending on what kind of orchard you
have). Once you have an idea of which
species are best for your trees, you
should then research that particular
species to see how best to foster it.
This site may help you find the
species that occur in your area: http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7417.html
But a call to your local farm bureau
may also help with a list of
pollonators for whichever kind of
trees you have. That is information
that is almost certainly available
through an agricultural office. |
