21-07-2013, 08:51 PM
Apparantly we're all to be very concerned about the declining wasp population in the country.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-23356578
Two bad years they've had on the trot & this year's freak warm spell followed by a freezing cold spring killed a lot of queens emerging too early & which unlike bumble bees didn't have a fur coat to protect them.
The experts say they form an important part of the balance of nature in keeping other insects down, & we should be concerned there's less of them.
What a load of traffic bollards!
There's plenty of natural predators of flies & other beasties to take their place. Like sparrows, whose numbers have crashed due to a lack of insects to feed their young with early in the year. Spiders as well, which wasps kill & steal insects caught in their webs (have saw this happen first hand).
Wasps also attack beehives in order to kill a competitor for pollen & feed them to their larvae. As bees are in decline due to viruses, even less reason to feel any sympathy for wasps. A neighbour of mine kept bees & twice had half his colonies wiped out due to mass wasp attacks. Once a hive is attacked once, a large number of bees are taken off other duties solely to protect the hive, growth is stunted & thus honey production.
The only good wasp is a dead one - they are the neo-nazis thugs of the insect world without any redeeming qualities & the planet would be well rid of them.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-23356578
Two bad years they've had on the trot & this year's freak warm spell followed by a freezing cold spring killed a lot of queens emerging too early & which unlike bumble bees didn't have a fur coat to protect them.
The experts say they form an important part of the balance of nature in keeping other insects down, & we should be concerned there's less of them.
What a load of traffic bollards!
There's plenty of natural predators of flies & other beasties to take their place. Like sparrows, whose numbers have crashed due to a lack of insects to feed their young with early in the year. Spiders as well, which wasps kill & steal insects caught in their webs (have saw this happen first hand).
Wasps also attack beehives in order to kill a competitor for pollen & feed them to their larvae. As bees are in decline due to viruses, even less reason to feel any sympathy for wasps. A neighbour of mine kept bees & twice had half his colonies wiped out due to mass wasp attacks. Once a hive is attacked once, a large number of bees are taken off other duties solely to protect the hive, growth is stunted & thus honey production.
The only good wasp is a dead one - they are the neo-nazis thugs of the insect world without any redeeming qualities & the planet would be well rid of them.