What are these bees

Started by thevoice, February 02, 2009, 04:16:55 AM

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thevoice

Hey people,

I've got some odd looking bees hanging around my beehive, they are not going into the hive, as far as I can see, just hanging around the area.

Anyone know what these are?  They are a lot brighter in colouring than normal honeybees. I suppose they could be Australian natives, which would be cool, but I am curious.


thevoice

Edit: I suppose they could be wasps, that would be a little embarrassing. I am under the impression wasps are bigger.

BjornBee

I can not speak for Australia, but here in the states, there is something like 1500 types of solitary bees, to include wasps, hornets, etc. So, I'm guessing that you have a large population also in Australia.

The yellow makes it look like a yellow jacket, but it may very well be a type of hornet by it's size and shape.
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ArmucheeBee

I would say...  Yellow jacket if it is about the same size as a honeybee.  We battle these all summer and fall.  They will nest in the ground.  Hope you don't have this American native.  Send us some roos and platypuses.
Stephen Stewart
2nd Grade Teacher

"You don't need a license to drive a sandwich."  SpongeBob Squarepants

BeeHopper

 Markings suggest a Yellow Jacket, but a European Wasp has similar ones too  :-D

David Stokely

I too would say yellow jacket.  I've watched them wrestle, eventually sting and then kill or immobilize anyway, honey bees at my hives, then nip off the honeybee's legs, wings, and head before carrying the body of the honey bee away.  I don't think the loss to yellow jackets was ever enough to worry about as far as numbers, but it was a fascinating scene to watch unfold before me.

Lone

Hello,

I'm no entomologist, but it looks like the yellow jacket and european wasp are the same.  I know they became common in Melbourne quite a while back. 

http://www.qpm.ca/Pests/Yellow_Jacket.html

Thevoice,  I remember there was an Insectarium at Woodend, off the Calder Highway.  I went there a few years ago, and it was fascinating.  I wonder if it still there. 

Lone

bassman1977

Looks like a yellow jacket to me.
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ArmucheeBee

We really need a size to determine the jacket from the European.  Do you Europeans nest in the ground?
Stephen Stewart
2nd Grade Teacher

"You don't need a license to drive a sandwich."  SpongeBob Squarepants

Cindi

Thevoice.  I bet they are the common yellowjacket, paper wasp, could be one of many species.  They like to eat the larvae of the honeybees.  They can do quite a bit of damage, but outside the hive, they can co-exist, look at this picture of a paper wasp drinking sugar syrup alongside a honeybee when I was doing some communal feeding.  Have a most wonderful and awesome day, life, love our life.  Cindi 





P.S.  I still don't know for sure what species of wasp bothers my colonies.  I recently found out that they are more than likely paper wasps, rather than yellowjackets, because of the type of nest that they build under the bee hives.

http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://www.onesourcepestcontrol.com/assets/paper_wasp.JPG&imgrefurl=http://www.onesourcepestcontrol.com/noninteractive/stinging_insects.html&h=288&w=347&sz=22&tbnid=mYkFtflcT6ArwM::&tbnh=100&tbnw=120&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dpaper%2Bwasp&usg=__24iJ208xX-SjQ0gMIhyYnvfhdfQ=&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=3&ct=image&cd=1

There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold.  The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold.  The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee.  Robert Service


JP

Cindi, I remember that picture, its quite good, of a honeybee and a yellow jacket.

Reminds of the song http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZtiJN6yiik


...JP
My Youtube page is titled JPthebeeman with hundreds of educational & entertaining videos.

My website JPthebeeman.com http://jpthebeeman.com

thevoice

Thanks everyone,  looks like it must be a wasp.  Hopefully I won't see too many of them.

Cheers