Bumblebees: a duel to the death

[rmb...@istar.ca]

I got to see a little drama literally at my front door today. For the
past month I haven't able to get and about to look for "stuff", bad
weather, appointments on the sunny days, the "have-to's" like tackling
beaver dams, and dealing with a very active
shepherd/mallinois/something else mutt puppy have been interfering
with my "wanna-do's". On top of the brutal heat I've been battling a
horrible cold virus for the past couple of weeks that has knocked me
flat and made me absolutely miserable. All this during prime-time
observing season!

Anyway. I went out to the car today to get something, and when I came
back to the house there was a very angry-sounding bumblebee buzzing
around the top of the door, so I waited half a minute, not wanting to
provoke it further from whatever had put it into such an agitated
state. While I was waiting another bumblebee dropped down from the
eaves, and the two of them plowed into each other midair and tumbled
to the ground. They were biting and clawing and trying to sting each
other, it was hard to see the details as they were buzzing and rolling
on the walkway. I stepped over them and through the door to get my
camera and a pad to kneel on to get some photos. Usually when I see
bees or wasps fighting it lasts a few seconds and then one flies off,
but these two went at it for 10 minutes or more. Finally one stopped
struggling and lay still, the other was slightly pulsating, I thought
both of them were goners. I scooped them into a shallow container
with a lid, thought I'd take some photos later with the "good" camera
and lens. About an hour later I heard buzzing in the container, one
of them had revived, so I took it out on the balcony to release it.
The other one still looks to be dead.

My other encounter with hymenopterans today was with an unidentified
wasp, slightly smaller than a paper wasp. Having been physically
unable to keep up with various tasks my raised bed gardens have been
somewhat neglected and the weeds have taken full advantage of my
absence. I set about ripping the weeds from around my tomato plants,
one pot was quite thick with foliage. I was happily pulling them out
and did not see the wasp, it stung me twice in the back of my right
hand and in the back of my index finger, a quick and
barrage. I saw the wasp fly away as I jerked my hand back, uttering
some very unladylike language, but couldn't quite identify the
culprit. I immediately marched up the hill to the house uttering more
unladylike language, washed my hands and packed my right hand with ice
to prevent swelling, which sometimes happens when I get stung on the
hand. The usual balloon-like puffiness didn't appear but my right
index finger is still a bit swollen.

So, not my usual observations of watching bees lazily working over the
pretty flowers doing their pollination thing.

Rose-Marie, north of Perth Road Village