~Off Topic~ Selena We Love You

~ Off Topic ~

SELENA WE LOVE YOU!

R.I.P SWEET ANGEL! ♥

1971-1995

Today marks the 15th anniversary of her tragic death. We will never forget you. Thank you for all the memories.

In case you are wondering. I love Selena. She's one of my favorite singers.

Monarchs Are Dissapearing......

.....and it's our fault......

What? You thought it was "Mother Nature's" changes? Well it's that too but it's mainly our fault because we're chopping down the trees the butterflies overwinter in.

I saw it on the news today and was completely shocked. First the honeybees and now our monarchs....at least in this case something can be done.

Lord have mercy or we'll be screwed even more then we already are.

Link: Clicky

I can only hope that something is done about this.

Killer Bees ( Africanized Honeybees )

Ok so I know we did something on them already but......

From:

South and Central America, the American Southwest

Why you must fear it:

You know how you can spot one of these? You can't. There is no physical way to determine the difference between an Africanized bee and a common European bee. None whatsoever.

You can, however, easily tell the difference based on their behavior. Regular bees will give you about nine seconds of being too close to the hive before deciding you're a threat and then attacking you. So it's pretty easy to just walk past them without any screams. And if you do get them after you, they'll consider you to be 'chased off' after about 300 feet.

This is true.....them things are evil. Keep reading:

Africanized bees do not roll this way. They give you half a second of being too close before they decide it is time to completely fuck your shit up and empty the entire hive--tens, maybe hundreds of thousands of angry, angry bees.

When you run, flailing and crying and soiling yourself while screaming "JESUS CHRIST I'M COVERED IN BEES," they will chase you for over half a mile

More scary shit:

Africanized bees owe their existence to science. Warwick E. Kerr created them in Brazil during the 1950s by crossing a European bee with an African bee.

He wanted a bee that could live in the jungle. He got a bee that swarms by the hundreds of millions, is insanely territorial, mindlessly aggressive, has killed anywhere from a few dozen to a few thousand people. And, can live in the jungle.

And after they escaped and swarmed northward, it turned out they were a-OK with deserts, too. They'll be in Montana by 2010.

~ Cracked

I completely forgot that they did something on Honeybees until now. So I went in my bookmarks and dug it up.

Copy Right infringement is not intended. Please don't sue.

The link is here: 5 Most Horrifying Bugs in the World

Enjoy! This post is rated "R" for language and content....if your kids have nightmares from reading this. It's not my fault. :P

I just hope I never come into contact with these things....

Carniolan Honey Bee Apis mellifera carnica

The Carniolan Honey Bee Apis mellifera carnica.

Lovely isn't it. Apparently there are many subspecies of Apis mellifera. Anyway the info is just a click away this time.

I'm feeling lazy today. XD You have those days so you know. :P

Clicky!

That's all folks! Until next time! Peace out!

Oh The Horror African Bee Apis mellifera scutellata

Look at the sweet little honey bees......♥

Aren't they sweet? So friendly....and they make us honey!

They're not evil......who said they were evil?.....they make us honey!

They're not evil at all........nope not at......

WRONG!

The bees pictured above are indeed 100% evil. Why? They are African bees. These are the bees that are responsible for creating the nightmare known as the "killer bees".

If not creating it then being apart of it.

But they're nasty little bastards too. Have a looksie:

These bees are much more aggressive compared to the European subspecies. Small swarms of AHBs are capable of taking over European honey beehives by invading the hive and establishing their own queen after killing the European queen.

See? And then there's similar crimes committed by the Cape Honey Bee:

The African bee is being threatened by the introduction of the Cape honey bee into northern South Africa. If a female worker from a Cape honey bee colony enters an African bee nest, they are not attacked, partly due to their resemblance to the African bee queen. Now independent from her own colony, she may begin laying eggs, and since A.m. capensis workers are capable of parthenogenetic reproduction, they will hatch as "clones" of herself, which will also lay eggs.

As a result the parasitic A. m. capensis workers increase in number within a host colony. This leads to the death of the host colony on which they depend.

An important factor causing the death of a colony seems to be the dwindling numbers of A. m. scutellata workers that perform foraging duties (A. m. capensis workers are greatly under-represented in the foraging force of an infected colony) owing to death of the queen, and, before queen death, competition for egg laying between A. m. capensis workers and the queen. When the colony dies, the capensis females will seek out a new host colony.

Evil satanic bastards these things are no?

And you thought that all honey bees were good....>:)

Info from Wikipedia. Although I got a little mixed up on this one. Forgive me.

Until next time!

Dwarf Honey Bee Apis florea

One of the prettiest honey bees if not the prettiest I've seen.

More info ( Wikipedia )

The Pherobase also gives some substantial info on these pretty bees.

The distribution area of A. florea is generally confined to warm climates. In the west, the species is present in the warmer parts of Oman, Iran and Pakistan, through the Indian sub-continent and Sri Lanka.

It is found as far east as Indonesia, but its primary distribution center is southeast Asia. Rarely found at altitudes above 1500 m, the bee is absent north of the Himalayas.

It is frequently found in tropical forests, in woods and even in farming areas. In southeast Asia it is not rare to find a nest of A. florea in a village.

As its name implies, the dwarf honeybee is the smallest species of honeybee, troth In the body size of its workers and in the size of its nest. A nest of A. florea consists of a single comb, whose upper part expands to form a crest that surrounds the branch or other object from which the comb is suspended.

Dwarf honeybees nest in the open, but not without camouflage: most nests are hung from slender branches of trees or shrubs covered with relatively dense foliage, usually from 1 to 8 meters above the ground. In Oman, where A. florea nests are frequently found in caves, such combs are without crests.

~ The Pherobase

Well since I don't want to be sued I guess I'd better give a link to the info ( there is more ).

Clicky!

Who knew that there were so many kinds of Honey bees?

Himalayan Honey Bee Apis dorsata laboriosa

This is the largest honey bee in the world.......if that's a worker I don't even wanna think of how big the queens are.

*Eeek!*

Once again Wikipedia provides some substantial info. Honestly how many different honey bees are there in the world?

The insect world never ceases to amaze me. I like honey bees. So I'm pleasantly surprised that there are so many.

I wonder if they're any in other colors besides blacks, reds, and browns?

Anyway on with the info!

Apis dorsata laboriosa, the Himalayan honey bee, is the world’s largest honey bee; single adults can measure up to 3.0 cm (1.2 in) in length. Before 1980, Apis dorsata laboriosa was considered to be a subspecies of the widespread Apis dorsata, the giant honey bee, but in 1980 and for almost 20 years thereafter it was elevated to the rank of a separate species.

There are three different types of Apis dorsata laboriosa honey: spring or red honey that is collected at higher altitudes, spring honey collected at mid and lower altitudes, and autumn honey from any site. Red honey has an intoxicating effect and various relaxing qualities that decrease over storage.

It is not consumed locally as it is valuable, and honey hunters prefer to sell it at a high price. As hive bees are not kept at such high altitudes, Apis dorsata laboriosa is the only bee species to produce this honey.

The wholesale price of the red honey is about five times the price of regular honey from Apis mellifera or Apis cerana and large amounts of it are exported from Nepal to Japan, Korea, and Hong Kong. The red honey is prized for its purported medicinal value and intoxicating qualities.

Who knew honey could be used for medicinal purposes? You learn something new everyday.

The rest of the info can be found here. Although it's not much as I used most of it. XD

See why I love them so much? Many different species and interesting facts!

The Honey Bee Series & Why We're Doomed.....

So I went on a researching rampage after watching this documentary on the life of a Giant Hornet Queen. I went to look up the Japanese honey bee ( Apis cerana japonica ) and the Yellow Hornet ( Vespa simillima ).

When looking up the Japanese honeybee I found out about a whole lot of other honey bee species that I didn't know existed. And that's what prompted me to start this thing.

But also and I need to stress this.....our fuzzy little friends are disappearing.....and no one knows exactly why.

I don't know if it's true for all species of honey bees but it's true for the European or Common Honey bee ( Apis mellifera ).

In other words the honey bees you're supposed to see every summer.

The mysterious 4-year-old crisis of disappearing honeybees is deepening. A quick federal survey indicates a heavy bee die-off this winter, while a new study shows honeybees' pollen and hives laden with pesticides.

Two federal agencies along with regulators in California and Canada are ordering new research on pesticides used in fields and orchards.

Federal courts are even weighing in this month, ruling that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency overlooked a requirement when allowing a pesticide on the market.

Scientists are concerned because of the vital role bees play in our food supply. About one-third of the human diet is from plants that require pollination from honeybees.

But it's not just from fields and orchards they're vanishing from. They're vanishing everywhere! Including my house.

I had known about the "disappearing act" of the bees for a while and I thought that they would get to the bottom of it and save the poor things. But I was wrong.

Last year is when it hit me. I hardly saw one. And when I did see one I was relieved to know that there was a nest somewhere.....

I think saw about 3 through out the whole summer.......

There were plenty of carpenter bees and yellow jackets but the honey bees were almost non existent where before they were dominating the sidewalks and the field outside my house and with the carpenter bees and yellow jackets they were having a feast on the nectar from the Japanese Pagoda Tree flowers that covered the ground.

But now it's just the carpenter bees and yellow jackets.....and the occasional honeybee......

It makes me want to cry. Something has to be done to save them. Because I don't believe that it's just pesticides that's killing them....it's something else.....

And until that something is discovered and wiped out......

About one-third of the human diet is from plants that require pollination from honeybees.....

.......Oh shit we're gonna die..... I just hope I'm not around to see it.

Night Wasps Provespa anomala

"Remember kids to every rule there is an exception" - Me :P

So you remember when you'd go out for a picnic and wasps and bees would try and steal your food and drinks?

And you'd run away screaming? Yeah what time of day was that? Surly you wouldn't be going out for a picnic at night?

But if you were crazy enough to do so you wouldn't have to worry about evil waspies stealing your food right?

Right? WRONG!

Meet Provespa anomala it and all it's other relatives ( other Provepsa sp. ) are rule breakers of the rule that "All bees and wasps are diurnal".

Apparently they:

* Are attracted to lights
* Their nests resemble that of Vespa sp. nests
* Are obviously nocturnal :P
* Have fondness of plucking drowning insects from public toilets
* Live in Asia

Other then that not much is known on their biology unfortunately. But they are fascinating.

Info simplified from the VL.

You get more pics of them too.

Well as you can see the insect world is insane. Next you'll be telling me that there butterflies that fly at night! Oh wait....O_O

More on that some other time.....

The Katipo

Latrodectus katipo

Wikipedia has got loads of info on this baby. For one thing I can't believe that any species of Latrodectus could be endangered but this one is.

It's sad. But go on and read all about it. Tell me what you think. For one I have always thought the genius Latrodectus fascinating.

And you can go and educate yourselves on the genus instead of individual species.....if you want to. I know you do though otherwise why would you read this thing? :P

So that's all for now. I'm tired and would like to get some sleep but I don't see that happening due to crazy bastards upstairs that honestly IMO need to feel the wrath of some angry Japanese Giant Hornets ( Vespa mandarinia japonica ).

Peace because we all know that this world needs it desperately....

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Hope everyone has a nice day!

甲蟲特蒐系列報導 the king of beetles

I have no idea what they're saying but it's interesting to see all the different species of Stag beetles.

Damn I need to learn Chinese. XD

昆虫を食う

Their reactions are priceless! XD

I wish it had English subs. Enjoy

It's in Japanese.

Tylospilus acutissimus

This is a very interesting looking stink bug don't you think?

Too bad the only thing on is and I quote "Often found feeding on flowers or caterpillars." According to Bugguide anyway...

Severely disappointing since they're apparently not uncommon......

Hedylidae Continued

I found alot of pics:

Clicky!

It's in French but I think you want to see the photos more. :P

Hedylidae

It was only a matter of time.....

Clicky!

Actually I knew of these for a while I just "forgot" about them until I came across the name again.

Unidentified Moth

I think this one is cute! Does anyone know what kind it is?

Don't hesitate to drop me a line if you do. :)

Dainty Swallowtail Papilio anactus

I thought this was pretty. I found some rather substantial info here.

Leave The Termites Alone!

Once again for some reason I'm having trouble posting the vid so here's the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGaT0B__2DM

This Is War!

Having trouble posting the vid again.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HL3sHuK3iGE

Zombies?!

Just imagine if this could happen to us somehow........O_O

Enjoy!

~Off Topic~

Immortal Jellyfish?!

CLICKY!

Yes I couldn't believe it either. It's so damn fascinating I just had to post this.

Enjoy.

Adorable #2

Adorable! Need I say more?

I have no idea what kind of grasshopper this is all I know is that it's from the Panama and it's adorable.

If anyone knows what kind it is please tell me. Thank you.

♥ Happy Birthday To Me! ♥

I'm 18 today! W00T!