Aquaphobia
- #1
Wasn't really sure where to put this, not pets because it isn't, and not really general discussion. Gardening seemed best because these bees are prized for their pollinating abilities!
I was outside in my PJ's carrying a net around the patio harvesting mosquito larvae from my standing water lures when I came across what looked like an entire nest of baby yellow spiders that had fallen in and was floating on the surface! Now I'm normally irrationally terrified of spiders but I do have a soft spot for the little yellow ones and I grabbed the finest net I had and set out to save them. I scooped the whole mess into the net and dumped it out onto a rock. Lo and behold they weren't spiders at all but a small tree catkin that had fallen apart into little spiderling-sized pieces! In the middle of it though was a dead Mason Bee. I felt bad that I hadn't been able to save it but I touched it and there was the slightest movement! So I picked it up (they're stingless) and held it while it warmed up. It expelled a bunch of disgusting liquid from its abdomen and I decided to place it on a towel outside where it could continue its recovery. Sadly though it stopped moving and appeared to be a lost cause. So I ran in the house and grabbed the jar of blueberry jam. If I'd been thinking I would have grabbed the container of pure Quebec maple syrup instead but blueberry jam was what I saw first. I dipped my finger in the juice and held it out to the bee. I had to hold the juice against its mandibles at first but as it gained strength it started lapping up the sugary stuff on its own and then, like a switch was flipped, it suddenly started moving and grooming out its crumpled and soggy wings!
It looked reasonably ok last time I checked on it, I think it's just waiting for the sun to come up and give it some warmth
The mosquito larvae were not so lucky
I was outside in my PJ's carrying a net around the patio harvesting mosquito larvae from my standing water lures when I came across what looked like an entire nest of baby yellow spiders that had fallen in and was floating on the surface! Now I'm normally irrationally terrified of spiders but I do have a soft spot for the little yellow ones and I grabbed the finest net I had and set out to save them. I scooped the whole mess into the net and dumped it out onto a rock. Lo and behold they weren't spiders at all but a small tree catkin that had fallen apart into little spiderling-sized pieces! In the middle of it though was a dead Mason Bee. I felt bad that I hadn't been able to save it but I touched it and there was the slightest movement! So I picked it up (they're stingless) and held it while it warmed up. It expelled a bunch of disgusting liquid from its abdomen and I decided to place it on a towel outside where it could continue its recovery. Sadly though it stopped moving and appeared to be a lost cause. So I ran in the house and grabbed the jar of blueberry jam. If I'd been thinking I would have grabbed the container of pure Quebec maple syrup instead but blueberry jam was what I saw first. I dipped my finger in the juice and held it out to the bee. I had to hold the juice against its mandibles at first but as it gained strength it started lapping up the sugary stuff on its own and then, like a switch was flipped, it suddenly started moving and grooming out its crumpled and soggy wings!
It looked reasonably ok last time I checked on it, I think it's just waiting for the sun to come up and give it some warmth
The mosquito larvae were not so lucky
