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Author Topic: bees attacking and eating green caterpillars??  (Read 21349 times)

Offline FRAMEshift

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Re: bees attacking and eating green caterpillars??
« Reply #20 on: September 01, 2011, 06:47:42 pm »
GIANT cicada-killer wasps, yellow and black, 2-3 inches long. 

Now we know why the cicadas only come out every 13 years.   :shock:
"You never can tell with bees."  --  Winnie-the-Pooh

Offline stjamesalmost

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Re: bees attacking and eating green caterpillars??
« Reply #21 on: October 15, 2019, 02:47:05 pm »
Wow  this is like fort Knox!    Anyway I was searching small bees that kill caterpillars,  frogs and praying mantas  when I came on this site.  I am 67 years old  ---- spend lots of time in the great outdoors all my life and came across a small swarm of small bees (maybe small yellow jackets) bees --- they look like sweat bees (about the same size ---small) and they were stinging and attacking a  large black caterpillar.   They kept at it for 2 days, until it was gone. I watched every chance I could.  Never saw anything like it.   Then  two days later they are  swarming a  small green frog.  Today I was in my yard talking to a neighbor, when I noticed a medium sized praying mantas  ----- I pointed it out  to him and  we noticed the same small bees  attacking it and stinging it ----it's eyes ---- under its wings ----the mantas tried to grab at them but they were persistent -----I moved the mantas, shaking off the bees .  He is also an outdoor person and had never seen or heard of bees attacking a mantas.   they are small BEES or small yellow jackets ----look like sweat bees!!!!!    Just thought you would like to know   Always something NEW  to learn!!!!!!!

Offline paus

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Re: bees attacking and eating green caterpillars??
« Reply #22 on: October 15, 2019, 03:00:52 pm »
Just a thought.  Many people call the black striped  paper wasp yellow jackets,  Yellow jackets nest mostly in the ground,  They are also a paper wasp but they build a wall around their nest, very similar to a hornet nest and they are about 1/2 the size of other wasp that builds under your cornice . In our locale, the larger wasp is called "Guina " wasp.

Offline beesonhay465

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Re: bees attacking and eating green caterpillars??
« Reply #23 on: October 15, 2019, 11:57:32 pm »
about honey bees stinging more than once they can certainly sting other insects more than once . in my hive if the drones are not persuaded to leave they are stung .don't believe they die after only stinging once.or at all. around here if you eat a burger at an out side cafe in the fall you better watch where you bite there may be a  yellow jacket or hornet sharing your burger.

Offline Beeboy01

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Re: bees attacking and eating green caterpillars??
« Reply #24 on: October 21, 2019, 05:56:07 pm »
I saw a hornet take down and dismember a full sized dragon fly this year. The hornet knocked it out of the air and chewed about half of the thorax off with two wings still attached. Only took about three minutes from start to finish. It was an impressive demonstration of just how aggressive a full sized hornet can be.
   I've heard that a large yellow jacket nest will attack and destroy a small bee hive in the fall for protein from the brood. 

Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: bees attacking and eating green caterpillars??
« Reply #25 on: October 21, 2019, 06:48:48 pm »
   I've heard that a large yellow jacket nest will attack and destroy a small bee hive in the fall for protein from the brood. 
Last year I lost a couple of hives to YJs. I killed hundreds of them to protect my hives. This year I have very few YJs here. My DynatrapS kills lots of them.
Ask Kathy P if YJs kill honey bee hives? She knows all too well how bad they can bee.
Jim Altmiller
Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
Ben Franklin

salvo

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Re: bees attacking and eating green caterpillars??
« Reply #26 on: October 21, 2019, 06:55:06 pm »
Hi Folks,

It appears that a likely nearsighted wasp mistook a coral snake for a caterpillar.

https://www.foxnews.com/science/florida-venomous-coral-snake-eats-rat-snake-wasp-video

Sal

Offline BAHBEEs

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Re: bees attacking and eating green caterpillars??
« Reply #27 on: October 22, 2019, 11:41:07 am »
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Honeybee can sting only once. Then its sting attach to victim like a harpoon. Then the bee will be dead after some hours.

Wasp's hunting weapon is meant to use continuously.

1.000.000 % sure that they are  wasps.

Note for accuracy's sake...a Honey bee does not face the same limitations when stinging other insects.  It is only when they sting thinks like big meaty mammals or similar that they get stuck in and face a death sentence for attacking.  They can and will repeatedly sting say a wood carver bee that lands on the hive porch.  I have always attributed it to the meaty texture and thick skin of us mammals.  Other insects they can nail over and over!