Author Topic: Bumble Bees (Read 12520 times)

papabear · « **on:** March 23, 2007, 04:15:14 pm »

Did you know there is a bumble bee the you can catch and not get stung. The way to tell is the bee has a yellow spot on his head. You can have lots of fun with this.

Understudy · « **Reply #1 on:** March 23, 2007, 06:08:35 pm »

Yeah , but don't confuse with a yellow back or you will regret it. Also note some bees bite. they don't sting it may not be as painful but it will be a surprise.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

Mici · « **Reply #2 on:** March 23, 2007, 07:51:59 pm »

since there are a few words about stinging and the tread seem "desirable", i got stung today by a bee i was trying to rescue. well usually i just say to myself "gotta get used to being sting" but since it was the palm i said i'll give the heat a go, so i heated up a nails had with a lighter and pressed it against the sting on my palm, of course you have to press it in the way you don't get burned. anyway, NO pain at all, NO swealing NO nothing! it really works the best. the heat is supposed to destroy vitamin A or some-the ingredient of bee-venom!, try it, try gettin stung on purpose and try this method if you don't believe!

Michael Bush · « **Reply #3 on:** March 24, 2007, 12:45:52 pm »

http://weeds.cropsci.uiuc.edu/images/Broadleafplantain/images/broadleaf%20plantain.jpg

I crush some of this and put it on the sting. I don't know of anything better. Next best are things like tobbaco, asprin, or any "drawing" poultice.

I haven't tried the heat but the plantain is instantaneous.

Cindi · « **Reply #4 on:** March 24, 2007, 09:05:59 pm »

I got the impression that bumblebees don't sting. Maybe I am wrong.

Michael, ah the plantain. I use plantain for every kind of insect bite. It is powerful medicine, crushing the leaves and rub it on spots that are affected by bites. I was brought up on the power of many natural remedies.

And colloidal silver water works to relieve the pain from stinging nettle vine encounters too. Best of the day. Cindi

Understudy · « **Reply #5 on:** March 24, 2007, 09:08:01 pm »

Cindi,
Yes some bumblebees do sting. Repeatedly and with big nasty stingers. It is always advisable to be very careful dealing with any bee.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

Cindi · « **Reply #6 on:** March 24, 2007, 09:17:09 pm »

Brendhan, oh no!!! Man was I far off. Great days. Cindi

Stingtarget · « **Reply #7 on:** March 24, 2007, 11:22:46 pm »

I used to catch something similiar to what papabear is holding when I was much younger. You could differentiate it from a bumblebee because it had a flatter looking tail. I was told it was some kind of moth that resembled a bumblebee. Same markings. Haven't seen one in a long long time. Did have fun with it though....everyone thought I was crazy for trapping a "bumblebee" in my hands. They were easy to scoop off of flowers.

ndvan · « **Reply #8 on:** March 25, 2007, 12:19:24 am »

Here's a bumblebee sting story.

My Dad is a retired lineman (for the electric company not the football team). One day they had to clear some brush around a transformer and ran into a nasty bumblebee nest. He got stung quite a few times. A guy he was working with was getting stung, jumped a fence to get away . . . when he got bit by the next door neighbor's dog. Bumblebee stings are bad, but dogs turned out to be worse.

Ndvan

Michael Bush · « **Reply #9 on:** March 25, 2007, 02:55:47 am »

>And colloidal silver water works to relieve the pain from stinging nettle vine encounters too.

I've always used plantain for stinging nettles also. It stops it instantly too.

Cindi · « **Reply #10 on:** March 25, 2007, 10:15:39 am »

Excellent, good to know so many things about the plantain. It would be interesting to google plantain and to discover what the active ingredient in it is. Best of this beautiful day. Cindi

Sean Kelly · « **Reply #11 on:** March 25, 2007, 11:23:29 pm »

This is sorta off topic, but has anyone tried bumble bee honey? I know their hives are really small and probably dont produce much honey, but I've always been really curious. :-)

<>< Sean Kelly

beekeeperookie · « **Reply #12 on:** March 25, 2007, 11:55:53 pm »

I always used baking soda and water mixed for my stings

Bumblebee honey now that would be something I would try :-D

Brian D. Bray · « **Reply #13 on:** March 26, 2007, 01:43:24 am »

Braken fern juice also works on stinging nettles. It is also known as wild asparagus.

Sean Kelly · « **Reply #14 on:** March 26, 2007, 01:47:19 am »

Quote from: Brian D. Bray on March 26, 2007, 01:43:24 am

Braken fern juice also works on stinging nettles. It is also known as wild asparagus.

We have that growing wild around my place. Does it taste like asparagus? Is it safe to eat? lol

<>< Sean Kelly

Mici · « **Reply #15 on:** March 26, 2007, 11:31:17 am »

i think you'd have to kill a nest in order to get that little honey, really little, they don't store it, well they do but such small ammounst that it's almost not worth mentioning.

Sean Kelly · « **Reply #16 on:** March 26, 2007, 12:05:17 pm »

Quote from: Mici on March 26, 2007, 11:31:17 am

i think you'd have to kill a nest in order to get that little honey, really little, they don't store it, well they do but such small ammounst that it's almost not worth mentioning.

I know it might sound sick, but it's almost worth killing their little hive just to give it a taste... just once... ;)

Mici · « **Reply #17 on:** March 26, 2007, 12:20:57 pm »

nah, not sick, but cruel.
i know it doesn't make any difference to you, or to anyone but i'm pretty sure it tastes the same as honeybee honey, i would just assume it's thiner.

Sean Kelly · « **Reply #18 on:** March 26, 2007, 12:22:55 pm »

Quote from: Mici on March 26, 2007, 12:20:57 pm

nah, not sick, but cruel.
i know it doesn't make any difference to you, or to anyone but i'm pretty sure it tastes the same as honeybee honey, i would just assume it's thiner.

Yeah, you're right. Who knows? :-) I guess we'll never find out. Still would be interesting to try. :-) Hmm..

thegolfpsycho · « **Reply #19 on:** March 27, 2007, 10:44:33 pm »

Way back when dinosaurs roamed the earth, I dug up some bumblebees. The honey is in small marble sized pouches, almost leathery. Probably made of plant material, some secretions or something. As I recall, it was like most other honey, but darn little of it. And they made me pay dearly for every drop of it. I can clearly remember them moving right up my arms stinging me over and over. When they sting, it draws blood. I decided they were more for admiring their colors and enjoying watching than to fool with.

kgbenson · « **Reply #20 on:** March 28, 2007, 12:47:01 am »

The bee picture on at the start of this discussion is not a bumble bee, It is a drone carpenter bee. The males have the bright yellow spot on their forehead. They, like apis drones, have no stinger. The females do. It takes a lot of poking at them to get stung, but it can be done.

It's a hoot when the drones buzz you if you walk through their territory.

Bummer: I tried to post links to good websites on this bug but I just found out I can't post links until my post count goes up. :(

In any event, one of my favorite insects.

Keith

Sean Kelly · « **Reply #21 on:** March 28, 2007, 01:14:56 am »

Quote from: thegolfpsycho on March 27, 2007, 10:44:33 pm

Way back when dinosaurs roamed the earth, I dug up some bumblebees. The honey is in small marble sized pouches, almost leathery. Probably made of plant material, some secretions or something. As I recall, it was like most other honey, but darn little of it. And they made me pay dearly for every drop of it. I can clearly remember them moving right up my arms stinging me over and over. When they sting, it draws blood. I decided they were more for admiring their colors and enjoying watching than to fool with.

That's hilarious! Drawing blood?!?! Man, crazy! But how did it taste???? I'll take your experience as a sure warning. I'll stay away from bumble bee hives, but I'm still pretty darn curious. They're neat bugs. I think there's a bumble bee hive near my new bee yard I'm setting up. Everytime I walk from my barn to the bee yard I get 1 or 2 bumble bees buzzing around my head. They sure are cute and goofy lookin. :-)

Sean Kelly

kgbenson · « **Reply #22 on:** March 28, 2007, 01:18:40 am »

Some of the researchers that maintain bumble colonies will tell you that it tastes great, but there is very very little of it in a nest.

Pick up "bumblebee economics" by Bernd Heinrich - a terrific book.

Keith

abejaruco · « **Reply #23 on:** March 28, 2007, 02:05:28 am »

Quote

We have that growing wild around my place. Does it taste like asparagus? Is it safe to eat? lol

If any of you have thought about eat a braken fern omelette: :-P

Quote

The braken fern (Pteridium aquilinum) is one of the five weeds most common in the world. It grows in all the continents, from the sub Artic to the southerner parts of Africa and America. In the tropical regions it grows profusely in the temperate mountain zones which are cultivated by humans, for-ming dense masses which exclude other vegetation. The plant contains various toxic components which affect cattle dramatically: avitaminosis B1 mechanical paralysis, paralysis of the rumen, acute trombositopenia, renal and hepatic degeneration, hemorraging in the large digestive tract, cancer hematuria vesical in cattle. It can also cause permanent blindness in goats. Some these affects can be transmitted to humans through milk from animals in contact with the plant. Also it has been demonstrated that the milk can contain a carcinogen of Pteridium: ptaquiloside, in quantities sufficient to be the cause of or coagent in the high levels of stomach cancer found in the mountainous regions of Venezuela and Costa Rica, where this plant prevails and invades grazing lands of milk cattle.

Sean Kelly · « **Reply #24 on:** March 28, 2007, 04:11:41 am »

Quote from: kgbenson on March 28, 2007, 01:18:40 am

Some of the researchers that maintain bumble colonies will tell you that it tastes great, but there is very very little of it in a nest.

Pick up "bumblebee economics" by Bernd Heinrich - a terrific book.

Keith

I think I will pick it up. Always been fasinated by bumble bees.

I think I'll pass on the Omelete. ;-)

Sean

abejaruco · « **Reply #25 on:** March 28, 2007, 02:14:02 pm »

I am getting fascinated by the bumble too. IÂ´ll try a serie of photos about those "winged bus".
This photo is rescued from another year.

[url]http://album.miarroba.com/merops_apiaster/13/61/]http://album.miarroba.com/merops_apiaster/13/61/
[img]

[url]http://album.miarroba.com/merops_apiaster/13/61/

By the way, bumbles donÂ´t produce honey. They can store nectar. They donÂ´t need honey for winter, because the female sleep.

Mici · « **Reply #26 on:** March 28, 2007, 02:28:21 pm »

sean, i've read another report, when someone ate honey/nectar from bumble bees, since he didn't mention any specifics or anything special about it, i'd say it ain't different from honeybee honey.
i still have 6 empty boxes :-\ they just won't populate them...

kgbenson · « **Reply #27 on:** March 28, 2007, 03:43:28 pm »

"By the way, bumbles donÂ´t produce honey"

Yes they do, just little teeny amounts. And supposedly it tastes great. Of course the people tasting it are bombus afficionados. Anyone here belong to Bombus-L?

Just google bumblebee honey. or see bumblebee dot org.

Keith

Mici · « **Reply #28 on:** March 28, 2007, 04:04:53 pm »

hmm, i think i'd have to agree with abejaruco. they don't make honey, they store nectar, that's why my first assumption was that it's thiner than honeybee honey. they store it for VERY SHORT TERM usage, plus they don't cure it, far too much time consuming.
it is honey only partialy.

nepenthes · « **Reply #29 on:** March 28, 2007, 11:07:30 pm »

If i can find a queen, i would love to have a bumble bee "colony", I would also like a Wasp nest to but thats just me!

kgbenson · « **Reply #30 on:** March 28, 2007, 11:10:53 pm »

Um, not to pick a nit but. They do store honey. The cell they use is called, by the folks that work with bumbles, a honey-pot. Early on, when the colony is small most of the sugar is consumed rapidly, little is stored, but as the colony grows, carbs can be stored as honey. Not much, but it is considered honey non-the-less.

I refer you to page 36 of Heinrich's bumblebee economics where he describes a hive having 195 ml of, you guessed it . . .honey. Now this is an unusual amount, but the simple fact is they store honey. later in the paragraph he says "incidentally, the honey tasted superb - we all agreed that it tasted superior to any honeybee honey we ever tasted."

Keith

Scadsobees · « **Reply #31 on:** March 29, 2007, 09:20:36 am »

I pulled an old bumble nest out of my wall insulation, and it had something that looked much like honey in it, and the nest was several years old at least. Not knowing the history and could have been sprayed, I didn't try it.

On a different note...that picture in the beginning looked like it may have been a drone (big googley eyes like a drone honeybee) which would be why it wouldn't sting.

Rick

kgbenson · « **Reply #32 on:** March 29, 2007, 10:24:08 am »

"On a different note...that picture in the beginning looked like it may have been a drone (big googley eyes like a drone honeybee) which would be why it wouldn't sting."

'zactly, a drone carpenter bee. The yellow spot is the give away.

They are really cool bugs. They get right up in your face an buzz you if you get too close ot the terratory you ahve staked out. It is all bluster though, there really isn't anything they can do to you.

Keith

Mici · « **Reply #33 on:** March 29, 2007, 10:53:23 am »

ok, so it is honey.
anyway just wanted to say to nepethes that catching bumble bee queens is a piece of cake, i could catch litteraly hundreds of them around here, which is actually a good sign. i've also noticed actually took a note when they first apper, so i'll know the next year. they started flying around and searching the nestin sites (i know they were, the looked into any darker hole) when temperatures were around 15Â°C for 2 weeks, when the first spring flowers were fading away and when appricot and those round i don't know if you call them plums, let's just say early plums started to bloom. the appricot tree was full of them.

though i cought many, i must confess i "killed" 2 with all good intentions, the remainder flew away after i opened them out, now i have one box in my room, conceled of course. i thought they'd establish a nest if closed but after a week they just flew away.