Guilfordbeekeepers.org

Has anyone seen what is a long as a large bumble bee but looks like a giant yellow jacket? Two days in a row I went out in my yard and this giant bee is flying at me. Could this be a queen of a yellow jacket tribe or what??
I've had one honey bee sting in the head and not looking for another anytime soon. I headed back in the house.

If it looks like a very large yellow jacket, is probably a European hornet. They will grab live honeybees or sometimes scavange in front of the hive. They feed insects to their brood. I am seeing fewer of them than I did a couple of weeks ago. In small numbers, they probably don't cause any real harm, but if they are really going after a hive, it is probably a sign that the hive is weak and in trouble from other causes.

Here is a picture of a european hornet. Is it what you saw?

http://www.guilfordbeekeepers.org/forum ... t=attacked

Big bugger- but that is pretty much what it looked like. That must be what it was. Never heard of them. This happened in my back yard not near the hives but I need to put my head cover on and observe my hives closer. Since that sting in the head I haven't been too close to the hives. The swelling of the tongue was a weird and scarey experience. My eye swelled shut too. Actually, my whole face swelled like a pumkin. Thank goodness for the EpiPen !

jae
The swelling of the tongue was a weird and scarey experience.
I would say your best get a EPIPEN because if the tongue was swelling
the next time you can count on a trip in a ambulance ..
The swelling of the tongue means your on the road to Anaphylactic shock
so go talk to your doctor , about this

Hi Coffee, Thank goodness I did have a EpiPen and by the time the ambulance got here my epipen kicked in and the swelling was going down. The EMS observed me and took my vitals etc but the EpiPen did the trick, it just didn't stop my face and eye from being swelled shut for 2 days...

That was one of the first things I got after the hive and girls ,, I got an adult and a kids as my grand kids love to play around the hives ,, and help work the hives .,, they were told if they are in frount of the hives they may get stung .. one looked at me and asked if they would get punished if they got stung ( for killing one of the girls ) , I said no , but it will hurt ,, he looked at me and went back to playing in frount of the hives ,, he said thats no big deal ..
yes they all have been stung..

That's my kind of boy....