Bees....

[BostonBull]

I have a good sized sugar maple that I am taking down tomorrow. I went by the other day when it was 80 out and there were a good amount of bees in the top. The top is completely dead and there is no nest hanging from the tree. It is supposed to be around 50 tomorrow and no sun and maybe some rain. Will the bees not be around then? Someone also told me that there is a wood boring bee that doesnt sting, is this true? What do they look like if it is true.

 

[CoreyTMorine]

Dude its funny you post that. I just fineshed a big dead oak up in lowell, these wierd wasps were all over the place, flying around the branches. I only saw a few close up, they mostly ignored me, but they had skinny abdomens and more red coloring than yellow. I didnt get bit and the ground guy had no problems.

 

[stehansen]

They look like a bumble bee except are completely black. They are called carpenter bees, as I understand it the females have a stinger and won't use it and the males don't have one and are pretty aggresive acting but can't really hurt you. They bore about a 1/4" hole in rotten wood and have their nest in there.

 

[bottlefed89]

I did a removal of a live and healthy pin oak the other day and there were hundreds of these wasp looking things flying around. Other than my groundie being scared cause he's a puss, they caused no problems.

 

[gunrac]

It is a very good idea that you identify what you are dealing with. We were stripping a city tree in a right of way with half the tree hanging over the street. It was cool that morning, with no sign of bee activity. Blocking traffic as needed, I had a man in the bucket launching out some good size leaders on the street. One big dead ol' boy hit the road an exploded. It looked like the smoke on a tire burning coming out of that thing. "HORNET'S"THEY SHOT STRAIGHT UP TOWARD THE OPERATOR. He brought that bucket down as fast as he could, bailed out an took off running down the road as fast as he could move. He run beside a ground-man and he was off to. They run probably a block and a half. Both ended up in the hospital with multiple stings on the face, head and hands. Thankfully it was cool enough for flannel shirts, as they were even stuck to there cloths. Glad they went the other way from where I was at.
Ran into another ordeal with them. A summer storm had taken out a big leader of an Oak in the back yard in a prestige residential nieghborhood. We cleaned it up an started stripping the tree. I was operating the bucket. All of once I was pelted a couple times. I backed off an started looking around. WOOOO! I got out of there. These were just honey bees, but man there was a ton of them. I tried to con a couple bee keepers into taking care of them, but they didn't want anything to do with bees in a tree. I was told to wait until after dark to spray as they were more likely to be in there nest at that time. "MADE SINCE" I had figured where they were going in an an out. It was hot only cooling down to the 70's at night, also at that time year it didn't get absolutly dark until after 10:30 at night. I set up later in the day to conker the mission. Fired up the truck around midnight. The neighbors started pouring out wondering what was going on, one of them even called the law. I ended my task by spraying a extra heavy dose of Diazinon, stuffing the hole with a rag. Next day, I only seen 3 or 4 bees.
P.S. It also turned out to be good advertizement after my small crowd was made awhere of what I was doing.

 

[underwor]

Did the large reddish "wasps" have a very long ovipositor (1 1/2 or more) out of the abdomen? If so it is a clear wing moth or borer, such as ash borer, as in this link. http://ashalert.osu.edu/images/ashalert_17_border.jpg You find them stuck to all dead and stressed trees about this time of year. They die after laying their eggs. I have had students take off like a shot when they see them, but they are a moth and so they have a bite like a butterfly and no stinger. The ovipositor sure looks like a giant stinger.

As to dealing with the bees, three ideas. One get there early in the morning and plug the hole they are using, two wait for 30 degree weather (the past 3 days here), or (if it does not knock you out) hang a rag on the back of your helmet that has been soaked with a little gasoline. Most won't come close, those that do will die of the fumes. I have used this many times and it works good. Or get an old smoking chainsaw and mix the oil super rich, like the smokers bee keeppers use.

Just full of good ideas today.

 

[Dadatwins]

I have used a cheap $10.00 fire extinguisher on some bee nest and had good results. As for the wood digger bees, think they are larger and more scary looking than the standard but not as aggressive. I would have some benadryl and ice packs on the jobsite anyway just to be safe. Hopefully no one allergic on the jobsite or you should be carrying an epi-pen in your kit also. Be careful.

 

[JonnyHart]

Every time I would trim or remove an elm or a locust, the bees are all over it. I guess they like the smell or taste or something. They don't bother me, they ain't aggressive. I've seen the scariest looking bees in elms. They're like two inches long, with a big stinger stickin outa their butt, but they leave you alone. BB, most importantly, always make sure you got an easy escape route.

 

[begleytree]

I have a dead 48"dbh oah to take down monday. hole at the bottom is 4" wide, 18" tall and is puking yellow jackets. Its all adding up to be a fun day.
-Ralph

 

[Husky288XP]

The large primitive bee looking things are wood wasps and Boston Bull it sounds like you have a bee colony in the sugar maple. You may start your removal and find them so "bee" careful.

 

[Husky288XP]

The wood wasps are more primitive than most bees because a lack of tagmosis, tagmata-three defined sections of an insect head, thorax, and abdomen. Wasp evolution is behind that of most bees, in some physiological points.

 

[kf_tree]

I have a dead 48"dbh oah to take down monday. hole at the bottom is 4" wide, 18" tall and is puking yellow jackets. Its all adding up to be a fun day.
-Ralph

why wouldn't you tell the customer to call an exterminater or someone to deal with them? why would you knowingly walk into that?

 

[lumberjach]

Anytime I get into a tree with anytype of harmful insect I have a can of brake cleaner with me. It kills anything with a stinger. If you get the nest first they will be to sluggish to get at you. Anything that lands on the nest or in the nest will also Die. It dries quickly but it has lasting affects. I have also heard of people using wd40. However I dont recomend this tactic if you are highly alergic to bees. I have never been stung while spraying but there is always a chance. I am also ready to repel to the ground if necessary. Good Luck!

 

[JonnyHart]

I used starter fluid on some bees inside a cable box on a phone pole. As soon as they got a whif of that, they dropped. That stuff will drop a grown man too.

There is nothing more sad and depraved than a man on the depths of an ether binge.

 

[Ax-man]

Had a hollow Catalpa tree to take down that had a honeybee colony in it.

Talked to a beekeeper about it, was told that we can do our work as long as it was a bright sunny day with low humidity. The days to avoid bee trees are days that are cloudy, overcast, humid or damp type days. The sun plays a role in the mood of bees, weather or not they will swarm and sting intruders or just not bother and go on with their bee activities and not sting passerby's.

The beekeeper was right, picked a good day was able to take down the Catalpa tree, cut it up going right through the main stem with the honeycombs inside, loaded it on to trucks with a loader, hauled it off and dumped it with the bee's swarming around the whole time. No one got stung the whole day it was amazing.

Wasp's and hornets are a different matter, especially hornets, they will go after an intruder no matter what kind of day it is. Been stung by them a few times hurts the worst and swells the most of all the stinging Hymenoptera insects.

The only thing worse than a hornet sting is a spider bite, that is fun one too.

Larry

 

[R Schra]

Every time I would trim or remove an elm or a locust, the bees are all over it. I guess they like the smell or taste or something.

I did see that to, it seems to me the bees or wasps chew the bark of for their nestbuilding.

 

[stehansen]

The beekeeper was right, picked a good day was able to take down the Catalpa tree, cut it up going right through the main stem with the honeycombs inside, loaded it on to trucks with a loader, hauled it off and dumped it with the bee's swarming around the whole time. No one got stung the whole day it was amazing


The only trouble with this is that the bees that get left behind are often aggressive. I have a cottonwood to take down in a couple of weeks with honeybees in it and I was planning on spraying them with Sevin.

 

[begleytree]

why wouldn't you tell the customer to call an exterminater or someone to deal with them? why would you knowingly walk into that?

Couple of reasons, KF
first, the local bee guy, who harvests the y jackets was there today to 'shop vac' what he could for medical purposes, then homeowner sprayed wasp spray all over, along with gas. Should have taken care of most of them.
Monday early will find me on site, with a case of wasp spray for the stragglers. But I do expect stragglers, and I expect them to be in a bad mood. Its mostly for the groundie I'll be spraying, and arming him.
And lastly, I never have any problems with bees. Perhaps its the lack of fear, and the associated phermones a person would put off? I've cut large hornets nests in half with a saw and not been stung, although everyone else there was hit many times.
I play with honeybees, respect wasps and jackets, and ignore hornets. Hornets track moving targets. stay still while they crawl all over you, you won't be harmed. Your buddies running away will be eaten alive.

On a side note, if anyone knows how to order bee supplies (hives) pass it on to me please. Have finally moves to the country on my own property, and am wanting bees.
-Ralph

 

[JonnyHart]

Perhaps its the lack of fear, and the associated phermones a person would put off? I've cut large hornets nests in half with a saw and not been stung, although everyone else there was hit many times.
I play with honeybees, respect wasps and jackets, and ignore hornets. Hornets track moving targets. stay still while they crawl all over you, you won't be harmed. Your buddies running away will be eaten alive.
-Ralph

You are either out of your freakin mind or got nads the size of grapefruits!
This is the way I've always looked at it, everybody knows that when a bee stings you, the stinger stays, thus disembowling the bee, and killing it, so they don't want to sting you unless you f*#k with them or their nest. The wasps and hornets can sting you over and over again, with no disembowling, so they got no reason not to sting you. If you are anywhere near their nest they will go bonkers... c'mon! Did you really cut a hornet nest in half with a saw?

 

[hobby climber]

Honey Bees ???

Did I here somebody mention honey bees...