Honey Production Surges across Texas

[Oliver Buckle]

Populations in the wild fluctuate a lot. If only a couple of butterflies survive a bad winter they can lay a couple of hundred eggs each, and the larvae won't be facing the usual competition. That's a hypothetical, but I heard a guy who had been studying robins in a large country park. They caught a virus that all but wiped them out, something like 98% death rate, but had recovered to normal numbers within two years.

 

[dirty hands]

I saw a couple killer hornets yesterday that reminded me that last year I had a really big nest of them in the yard. I think thats what they are. I wonder if that's part of the issue too. I have seen a few bumble bees and honey bees now.

It does seem to fluctuate a lot year to year here. lightening bugs are another that are up and down year to year.

 

[DiggersJo]

I saw a couple killer hornets yesterday that reminded me that last year I had a really big nest of them in the yard. I think thats what they are. I wonder if that's part of the issue too. I have seen a few bumble bees and honey bees now.

It does seem to fluctuate a lot year to year here. lightening bugs are another that are up and down year to year.

... another learnt - lightning bugs = firefly. Now that is something I miss from the warmer climate. Anyone further south in the UK seeing any yet?

 

[dirty hands]

I google lensed the hornet and its a cicada killer wasp.

 

[Oliver Buckle]

Anyone further south in the UK seeing any yet?

There was one in a crack at the front of the house when I came home about a week-10 days ago.
Wasps are amazingly divergent, there are about 9,000 different species in the UK, mostly small solitary things you wouldn't notice.

 

[roadrunner]

I saw a cicada killer in action of killing a cicada while hiking the Appalachian trail, at the time I never heard of the species. It was huge.

I just happened to see a video of them on one of the channels I'm subscribed

 

[dirty hands]

I looked them up last year when there were dozens of them by a sidewalk. I saw one kill a cicada also. I had forgot about it when I first posted.
There are just two there now.

 

[DiggersJo]

There was one in a crack at the front of the house when I came home about a week-10 days ago.
Wasps are amazingly divergent, there are about 9,000 different species in the UK, mostly small solitary things you wouldn't notice.

My fault Oliver, it was the fireflies I was thinking about!

 

[Oliver Buckle]

My fault Oliver, it was the fireflies I was thinking about!

No, my fault. There was a firefly in the crack, and then I went into talking about wasps.

 

[DiggersJo]

No, my fault. There was a firefly in the crack, and then I went into talking about wasps.

I've seen the occasional glow-worm here in the UK but never fireflies. Fireflies are one of the magical sights I miss as we used to get hundreds and lived out in the countryside without streetlighting , they were just amazing to see.