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the misunderstood cousin of the ant.

Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2018 6:35 pm
by MorbidBugg
Image
Paper wasp I believe.

Re: the misunderstood cousin of the ant.

Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2018 6:42 pm
by AntsDakota
MorbidBugg wrote:
Sat Sep 01, 2018 6:35 pm
Image
Paper wasp I believe.

Why is it misunderstood?

Re: the misunderstood cousin of the ant.

Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2018 7:01 pm
by MorbidBugg
Alot of people believe it to be a pest as it tends to set up nests in barns and the like. Many people go out of their way to kill almost any kind of wasp because of fear.
The common knowledge is wasps are bad. Even though the less common knowledge that they are a welcomed sight at organic gardens as they single handedly can do for crops what pesticides can and better.

Re: the misunderstood cousin of the ant.

Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2018 7:13 pm
by idahoantgirl
True, but I think more people (myself included) don't like wasps because they sting.

Re: the misunderstood cousin of the ant.

Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2018 7:17 pm
by MorbidBugg
Hehe I get that but ants stung as well and like the wasp they do it multiple times. I get there's a fear of being stung but again this usually is mislabeled as they are more often then not defending their nest from intruders,not blood thirsty monsters aumed at pricking us all with annoying toxins. Something we all respect from their cousins like fire ants and bullet ants. I think it's this fear that drives unnecessary products to be created insecticides are more aimed to kill the bugs that eat other insects much like the majestic wasp.

Re: the misunderstood cousin of the ant.

Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2018 7:27 pm
by idahoantgirl
yeah I guess that's why I've never kept a stinging species. :lol: I had a really bad wasp experience when I was little. One got stuck in between my face and my bike helmet straps and stung my in the same spot 3 times. The scary part was that I was on a thin path that had swamps on both sides with no railings, and I couldn't stop pedaling since you would get covered in mosquitos if you stopped moving for a moment. So yeah I was kinda screaming and swerving around for 15 minutes until we got to the parking lot.
Bad day :lol:

Re: the misunderstood cousin of the ant.

Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2018 7:30 pm
by idahoantgirl
But yeah I agree that they are quite pretty and their nests are really cool.

Re: the misunderstood cousin of the ant.

Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2018 7:39 pm
by MorbidBugg
Hehe a little tip that... doesn't matter now but mud. Slather those stings in the mud from the sides would've been an effective relief. But hindsight.

I dunno everything on this planet has a purpose whether we know what it is or not. And sadly the majority of humans believe wasps to be pests as they do not generate money and this is why bee populations are down. Why ant species seem to vanish from areas they once flourished why their natural food sources are Contaminated. And even when taking that specific picture I had 5 people behind me telling me to just kill it before it made a nest. Then I proceded to PICK HER UP and placed her in an adjacent tree just to prove a silent point. Growing up in swamplike area these were what I saw the most... next to grasshoppers.... now there's a bug that gives me the heebie jeebies..

Re: the misunderstood cousin of the ant.

Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2018 11:05 pm
by idahoantgirl
I find it funny how most people look at our hobby of ant keeping as strange and detestible, and we have a hard time understanding how other people don't find ants cute, yet we all tend to have some insect that we feel the same as most people do about ants. (termites for me. I just... can't.)

Re: the misunderstood cousin of the ant.

Posted: Sun Sep 02, 2018 2:03 pm
by AntsDakota
I have a wasp nest in a little manmade nook in my house. They have maybe around 30 workers or so. It was taken down, but was put back up again. I got a chance to see their larvae in the honeycomb before it was "painted" back in place. I watched them grow from just a few workers. It's almost like having a pet wasp colony that you don't do anything for.