The New And Improved Unofficial R65 Forum V2
General Category => Totally Off-Topic Discussions, Rants, Tire & Oil Threads, Etc. => Topic started by: dogshome on September 22, 2020, 12:33:15 PM
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King wasp / hornet on his way to work this morning decided to kamikaze me. Luckily I prefer full face helmets. Not quite an egg sized splodge, but big enough to warrant a wet wipe to remove him.
Then on the way home, mr hard-case crow landed right in front of me at 20ft and I'm doing 60MPH. "SUV with blonde" reflex kicked in and somehow I counter-steered round his asp just catching his body on my boot. How he missed the cylinder with his nut I don't know. I'm glad I didn't have time to hoot, or he might have made it to headlight level by the time I got there.
No1 dog (a greyhound) killed 2 crows at once in the back garden and they are solid little things, not like pigeons. The dog is also partial to a hedgehog (which he skins first), rabbits, hares and a whole pigeon including beak and claws). He's a lovely, intelligent and obedient dog - if you are human.
The stressed blondes with kids in SUV seemed easy after these two!
(I also drive a Saab in case the odd moose walks out in front) (we have deer here and they do not have any road sense or brains. Despatching Bambi on the way to work can't be a good thing) ("How was your run into work today? traffic is really bad", "I killed Bambi :-[ )
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I got hit right on the top of my helmet by a kamikaze on the way home. It was only a tiny little thing that flew out of the hedgerow. No mark, blood or feathers, so he or she may have got away with it. Made me shut my eyes and wonder if I'd be taking a trip to A&E for a second though. Full face helmet, visor shut, doing about 60MPH. More of a brush than the thunk I was expecting luckily.
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Hmmm, critters seem to have it in for ya! Maybe change up your route and confuse the buggers? Now that we've thinned out the Yellowjackets about all I have to contend with here at the cabin is ticks and chiggers. The only time I went out of the cabin yesterday was to feed the "Greedy Birds" (hummingbirds) and with three trips out to where the feeders are hung, about 25' from the door, I got three chigger bites... If I could I would kill 'em all!!!! :rifle: :flamethrowingsmiley: :furious3:
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;D Chiggers sound like something sci-fi post apocalyptic. I'm glad we don't have those. We do have female horse flies. They basically take a mouthful of flesh and run off with it. They are also well armoured and take several beatings with two hard surfaces to put-off. Smacking them with the hand or stamping on them on grass merely irritates them. They don't like Tiger Balm though.
A collared dove was my latest adversary today. I'm sure they have those white collars to stop them accidentally swallowing the 4 braincells they have. I saw him at the kerb watching me and about to make his escape (invariably right into the teeth of the grim reaper). Knowing he would take the most stoopid route, I'd already slowed and aimed at his current position. Yep flap, flap, panic, OMG etc. How these things make it day to day defeats me. Thick as two short ones.
It's not just flying things this week. Yesterday saw me leaning on the horn as 15 year old girl and obviously besotted boy ambled out into the main road. I'd got plan A and B for them. Plan B worked as they kept moving whilst still watching me with ever widening eyes. Plan A was swing out the other way.
Today the obligatory M5 with scruffy bloke driving and blonde with makeup yapping, huge wheels and sea-going suspension whaled out in front. I'd clocked him also. He heard the horn, saw me and made corrective actions. Everyone makes mistakes and he did the right thing once he knew I was there so no worries.
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What do you feed humming birds? Something with glucose or similar i guess?
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Hummingbirds love plain old sugar water. And once you put it out they remember it and expect it to be there.
They're also very territorial and fight each to take over a feeder as their own.
Crazy but fascinating little creatures. I've always liked watching them but learned a lot about them last year during the long pandemic days of staying home and staring out the windows a lot.
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They are definitely out to get me - I was working on the wife's car under the wheel arch and this little fella decided to skid off the car and land on my belly. Then when it moved, made his escape straight at my face, missed and went into the garage. He calmed down after 30 mins or so then made his break. He's obviously not learned that cars are slippery yet as his two pointer turned into a 10 pointer on the roof of my car.
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Heh, he looks rather surly. Probably thinking, "What you lookin' at!?" What kind of bird is it?
Yeah the little greedy birds drink sugar water. 1 part sugar, 4 parts water. Just had to mix a new batch today. Right now they are going through about 30 oz per day and later in the year after hatching out a couple more batches probably 48+ oz per day.
As far as chiggers go, if you get a bad batch of 'em your legs/ankles, and other parts that shan't be mentioned will look like you went through a Sci-Fi apocalypse! They are about the itchiest thing I've ever been bitten by.
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According to Google, he/she is a baby blackbird. Makes sense, since dad was on the telegraph pole calling him and mum was doing an impression of a miniature Velociraptor to scare our old cat off at ground level. You know head down, beak on point. Our moggy took the hint and wandered back off. She's at least 20, so live and let live. "Rainbow" (next door's 2 year old tom, named because he's black and white..) wasn't about.
When our cat's sister was alive, they would gang up on other cats or dogs on their patch if they didn't like the look of them. Oki in full view at 12 O'Clock head down, ears down, walking very slowly towards the 'prey'. Meanwhile, Mia (the one we still have) would be a lot less visible coming in at 3 or 9 O'clock in stealth mode. If dog or cat faced up to Oki by fluffing up or woofing, Mia would then make her presence known at a slow trot from the side. If said animal didn't run at that point, Oki would give it the full on hunting leopard style from the front, followed by the other one. They knew not to try this on skinny leg dogs or other ones staring with ears down. Most dog owners had started crossing the road when they could see fido was getting anxious.
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Hornets out and about here last night. Two or three of them, one came in with the bike. Lights attracted it. Big for the UK and allegedly not nasty, but it made me jump.
Sounded like heavy metal flying vs the buzzy wasps we get here. They probably explain why I've not seen many wasps or nests near the house this year! Nom! Nom!
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Hornet central tonight. I could hear, click, clunk, clunk every few seconds on the window. Nope not rain, fluorescent light attracting hornets. A small bunch around the security light when it came on as I went out looking for rain. So lights out, windows closed (now a random buzzbomb has gone back out).
There were several young wasps out foraging earlier so I guess that is what they have come for.
Both the young wasps and the hornets are not bothered about me walking around at the moment.
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Bloody hell! Hornets out all over tonight. Bang, bang, bang on the window. Lights out, windows shut. Dogs paying too much interest with lights on so they are in also!
Definitely the home-grown sort (not Asian) as I had a good look at several of them, eyeball to eyeballs. They aren't interested in me, just the fluorescent or bright white LEDs. I hope the new LED street lights don't kill them off as they are doing with other insect night life. Not many June bugs this year. Since there are so many hornets and the street light is 20 yards away, I guess not.
The local bats are out earlier (around dusk) and fill up on flies and mozzies (bless 'em).
Apparently hornets are partial to flies also. I guess they wait till it's really dark and the bats have had a beer after their meal and hit the sack.
http://www.vespa-crabro.com/hornets.htm (http://www.vespa-crabro.com/hornets.htm)
I definitely don't remember ordering hornets on Amazon :o
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Gaah! Nasty looking critter...
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I can confirm they are not nasty. Ugly and scary, maybe!
Some were about at dusk last night. The can certainly get a wriggle on. Being so heavy and noisy, you tend to notice them!
Insect Average Flight Speed Fastest Flight Speed
Honey bee 12mph 20mph
Bumble bee 7mph 33mph
Yellow Jacket 7mph 30mph
Hornet 14mph 25mph
I've never seen a wasp or honey bee at full throttle. The hornets were 'on a mission' last night and cleared the garden in a second or so and were definitely flat out. They are obviously smart and don't smack into you or obstacles - they can be seen taking a route over and around things.
Your dragon fly is like a Sopwith Camel zipping about, hornets are more your Reno racing P47. Hornet friendly here now. So no squishing or swatting!
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Hornets out again. Bang, bang on the window. Lights out, no further issues.
Meanwhile in the kitchen, my lad has left the 'ground zero 20Ktn white' LED lights on. Missus "Eeeek! Hornet! Hornet!". Being of the male persuasion, I go to investigate:
Hornet (hovering mid kitchen, right in front of me) "Turn those bloody lights out will ya? They really upset our flight compass"
Me "Yes, No worries". "Sorry to have troubled you"
I swear he tightened his flying goggles and waved as he went straight back out 8)
They really do seem to be gentle and intelligent things. IF you are a human.
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Strange, over here Hornets are nasty buggers. Yours sound like second cousins to our June Bugs. Big, fat, buzz like crazy, come out at night, attracted to light and seem to not have very good control over their flight path! Not nearly as scary looking as yours...
(https://bmwr65.org/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fallpest-thoroughcheck.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2FJune-Bug.jpg&hash=37043d43fe69e70c32adb8f3d64018e7e445f473)
I remember my Dad telling me him and his twin brother riled up a nest of Bald-Face Hornets and they put a hurtin' on 'em.
(https://bmwr65.org/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcirrusimage.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2016%2F11%2FIMG_05008.jpg&hash=6450df08311127e7ec0689dffb45581ad3286a0f)
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Bad pic through toilet window late at night.
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PMPLOL ;D
Went up to bed early. Was woken by the missus and some kerfuffle downstairs. TWO hornets and a version of the Benny Hill (remember him?) high speed chase going on in the living room. Hornet no#1 (we'll call him Henry) had missed the exit and had landed on my wife's hair :shocked2: Hornet no#2 (Hector) was on the window asking to be let out. So ALL LIGHTS ON!!! and Henry and Hector are now completely confused and chasing my wife around :beehive:
I hit the lights (out) and suddenly Henry and Hector are back on the window face to face and dancing. "What happened mate?" "Some bloody human put all the lights on and scared the hell out of me!" "OK chill out, the other one turned them out, take it easy" "Yeah, well I could do with a wasp snack after that".
2 minutes later, hornets outside, missus inside still shaking her hair and flapping her shirt around. I don't think she actually panicked ( ::) ) just 'surprised' 8)
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Hah! Too bad you don't have a video to send in to Funniest Home Videos! Did you think to have some Sax music going on in the background?
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More than my life is worth making or sending that video in ;D
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You only live once plus you could win $10000!
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'Friendly' wasp decided to hitch a ride in my helmet on the way home from work. I could see him walking about between my forehead and the visor.....
I resorted to Plan 'B' i.e. pull over, open visor, slowly remove sunglasses and then helmet. At some point during this manouvre, my guest managed to get squished and fell out in 3 bits. I was hoping he might fly off, so a win-lose not a sting-sting situation :beehive:
What is Plan A you may ask? "Oh F^&^%!!!!!!!" "Panic Mode Engaged", throw bike down nearest hedge and run off screaming like a girl :thud:
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Wasps!!!! :argue:
Just getting dusk and there is a steady stream of newborns heading down the side of our house. They don't stop, but there is an unmarked motorway here. The bigger ones tend to fly on, the little 'uns get in my way!!!
Anyone got a European hornets nest or queen they don't want? :beehive:
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A year of no insects seems to be improving this year. Riding through the fields today, the regular "smack!" of a bug somewhere on me :thumbup:
I was toying with some presciption goggles and using my open face helmet some more. Then I got hit by a huge bug. The full face helmet and visor I have probably wouldn't stop a bullet, but it stopped this monster. I might rethink the goggles...... :dizzy2:
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:beehive:
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The fake nest works. It's been up a fortnight and wasps gone. There was a real nest starting in that spot a few years ago, so that may help with the effect.
Didn't stop one getting in my helmet again on the way home from work though. I was doing about 20, so it had a soft landing in the padding next to my eye. I pulled over, took gloves off, shut eyes and removed lid........
Mr Wasp decided he'd had a good day and simply flew off home :o
The bugs are back this year in the UK. I've been washing my visor and lid over the sink every night. Cloth and bit of spit not enough.
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Spring 2026 is off to a flying start. I'd just left the works car park and was about to close my visor and....
Red tailed bumblebee inside my lid. Stopped, slowly lifted helmet and it dropped out and flew away happily. Yes they can sting.