Swarm

 

I have a love/hate relationship with bees. On the one hand, I am fascinated/obsessed with them; on the other hand, I am terrified of them. Read more about my obsession here.

One time I came out of a store and the car parked next to mine was covered with bees. That was my first encounter with a swarm. I waited for a beekeeper to come and take the swarm away before I attempted to get in my car. One of the reasons honeybees swarm is when their hive becomes too crowded.  The queen will prepare to leave the hive, and about half the bees will follow her. She'll likely rest somewhere while scout bees find a new home. This usually takes place within a day or two. Read this article about honeybee swarms here.

Yesterday, our home watch person in Naples met the A/C service guy at our condo. When they walked back to the outdoor unit, they found a lot of bees flying around.  Don was somewhere power washing a deck when he got a message from Peter: "Houston, we have a problem!"

He sent the above photo of about a thousand bees on our electrical box by the air conditioning unit. I hope you can zoom in a little to see it.

If not, this is what a swarm of bees looks like. Kind of scary. But my research said that a swarm of bees is really docile. They don't have a hive to defend. They are mostly concerned about sticking with their queen and finding a new home.

When Don got the message, he immediately called the Vineyards Association who said they would take care of it. I'm sure they contacted a bee removal service that would safely relocate the swarm. Not a job for me.

If you are as fascinated with honeybees as I am, the Beekeepin Like a Girl blog will teach you everything you want to know.

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A Total Eclipse of the Sun

 

Photo from NASA

Today we witnessed a total eclipse of the sun. The moon passed between the sun and the earth, completely blocking the face of the sun. In our area, the totality (photo above) happened at approximately 3:15 p.m.

I'm 65 years old and this is the first time I have ever been able to witness this phenomenon. I will likely not witness it again. Even though totality only lasted about 3 1/2 minutes, it was amazing. 

Because we live in northeast Ohio, there was a good chance we would have too much cloud cover in April to see anything, but we were blessed with clear skies!

Don and I went to an event at Case Western Reserve. After the luncheon, a panel of professors presented information and answered questions about the eclipse. Afterward, we went outside the Student Center to wait and watch.

I took this photo during the three minutes of totality when we were allowed to remove our protective glasses. The air temperature dropped about 15 degrees, the sky got dark, and there was an eeriness about night lights coming on in the afternoon.

Marion, IN was also in the path of totality. Katherine, Josh, and Marina were in darkness for 2 1/2 minutes. Marina called it "the moon getting squished." I liked the paper plate masks they made for the kids.

Daniel, Heidi, Dean, and Gavin enjoyed the eclipse from their house. Well... Gavin wasn't sure what was going on, but he enjoyed the sudden darkness.

Dean loved it when it got dark outside in the middle of the day. When the sun started brightening things up again he ran into the house crying. He said to tell him when it happens again. Unfortunately, that won't be until the year 2044.

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Hitchin' a Ride

 

Don and I are in Naples this week, and when we are in Naples, we usually ride our bikes 10 miles every morning. Tomorrow we might have a freeloading lizard joining us.

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Spring is Finally Here!

 It seems like it took ages for Spring to come this year. Every night when Don and I sat down to dinner, we looked out the window and noticed that the trees still had no leaves. It was just in the past week or so that it finally got green. On May 4, I took a picture of a small part of our back flower beds because I knew that it wouldn't take long for the hostas to grow. I took another photo 18 days later. You can see how fast they blossom.

May 4

May 22

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Snowed In

 

We got a lot of snow this week! On top of the foot we had before, we got another foot, and then several more inches this morning. I keep shoveling the front walk and a spot in the yard for Riley to do his business, and it keeps getting filled back in.

I'm also watching Lucy this week, so we need more room for business in the yard. Here's what Riley thinks of all this snow.

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An Empty Nest

 

In one week, the baby robins grew so big that they barely fit inside their nest. They had to stand on each other and fight for inside rights.

I laughed out loud when Pam captioned this photo, "The Flying Wallendas!!"

This is the last time Pam saw the birds. They were living on the edge of their nest contemplating taking flight. She predicted that they would drop at dusk. This photo was taken at 5:12 p.m. Saturday. Pam and Tim were on their porch for a couple of hours and did not see them leave.

At 8:20 the nest was empty. 

It was sad to say goodbye, but it is the way things are supposed to be.

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Bird's Eye View

 

"The early birds are getting the worms!"

Pam and Tim have a Robin's nest right outside their window and have been watching the young birds since they hatched. Pam's been sending me updates each day, and it has been fascinating. I thought I'd share some of the photos here along with Pam's commentary.

"They need to learn how to harmonize."

"This one needs to do something with that hair..."

"They go from screaming to lights out in a nanosecond..."

"I'm hungry!"

"I think I just got busted!! She hates the paparazzi!"

"I guess they want dessert now!"

This is a video of the birds wrestling!

Babies looking for dinner.

Mom and dad feeding their babies.

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Winter Snow Storm

 

This is what it looked like from our driveway this morning after a full day of snow on Tuesday. Our tree took a hit with snow weighing down its branches.

The sun came out just after this photo was taken around 10:45 a.m.  We had at least a foot of snow. Our power was out for 12 hours. Many people are still without power (including Pam and Tim as of this afternoon).

Peter and Kendall had a foot of snow in University Heights! Lucy had a great time running around with snow up to her back. 

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Fall Colors

 

This is the view from our front porch. Kendall took this photo yesterday. Perfect reflection!

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Blooming Hibiscus

My Hibiscus plants are absolutely thriving this year!

 I've never seen so many blooms and buds.

 The Hibiscus is a tropical plant, so it thrives in the sun. That must be why they are doing so well this summer. We have had so much sun and heat!

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Hailstorm

 I've seen a few hailstorms in my day, but not to the magnitude that Peter experienced yesterday at his home.

Look at the size of that hail! Peter said it was an inch in diameter.

This isn't the largest hail that ever fell. The record is a 2.25 lb hailstone that fell in Bangladesh in 1986. And the largest diameter hailstone (7.9 inches) fell in South Dakota in 2010.

Why was there a hailstorm anyway? I did a little research. 

Hail is formed when water droplets (rain) rise (wind) to an altitude where the temperature is below freezing.  The hailstone will keep rising in the updraft until it is too heavy. Then it falls to the ground while continuing to grow.

 It wasn't cold yesterday when this happened. It was around 65 degrees, but there was a thunderstorm. And there must have been enough wind to cause an updraft. How was that for a science lesson!

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Bumblebee

The plump and furry bumblebee doesn't frighten me as much as other types of bees. They seem to mind their own business. Even when I got up close and personal with my camera, he ignored me and kept on doing his job.

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Hibiscus

The hibiscus flowers are blooming out back on the deck!

Interesting facts:

1. Hibiscus is the national symbol of Haiti.

2. The Hibiscus flower is worn behind the ear of Tahitian and Hawaiian girls. Left ear = married or in a relationship, Right ear = single.

3. Tea made from Hibiscus flowers is nutritious

 because of its high vitamin C content.

4. Dried Hibiscus is edible and is a delicacy in Mexico.

5. In Pakistan and Nepal, Hibiscus flowers are used to reduce fever.

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Lake-Effect Snow

This is what is meant by lake-effect snow: If you live in the snow belt, you get belted with snow. My friend Crystal sent me this photo of her patio. They got 32 inches of snow last night in Chesterland.

And here are two pictures Pam sent me. She lives in Concord.

We live 30 minutes south of them, and this is how much snow we got
 - a mere dusting.

I'm not saying we don't get a lot of snow here. We're still in the snow belt. But sometimes, like last night, it misses us.

The first six years of our marriage, we lived in Kirtland which is located 30 minutes north of here, near Chesterland. We got buried in snow every winter.

How does lake-effect snow work in Cleveland? Lake-effect snow is produced when cooler air masses move across long expanses of warmer lake water. This warms up the lower layer of air which picks up water vapor from Lake Erie. The water vapor rises up through the colder air, freezes and comes down as snow. Lots of snow.

That's my meteorological lesson for the day. 

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Stinky Stink Bugs

I've been battling stink bugs all fall.

First, I would find them while painting in our rental apartment. They pretty much stayed near the windows, and I tried to ignore them, but when I got too close with the paint brush, they would startle me by flying across the room. They are so creepy looking.

One time, I accidentally painted one with white trim paint.

I was very careful not to crush any because I heard that they spray you with their stink. And I sure didn't want that.

Next, I started finding them in my own house. One was on the ceiling in the guest bath for over a week. I didn't use that bathroom for fear that it would fall on my head.

There was one in the master bathroom that I had to catch. I put a cup over it and left it for two weeks. I figured that would kill it.

No. It was still alive when I lifted the cup. Apparently stink bugs don't need food or water to survive.

In a USA Today article from 2015, it reports that stink bugs can live six months without food. So how do you kill them? Fill a spray bottle with a 2% soap to water ratio and spray them.

I would have done that today if I'd had a spray bottle and soap in my car. I had the ultimate stink bug experience.

When I used my finger to roll down my window, there was a stink bug right in the crevice where your finger latches on to the button to roll down the window. Yes, my fingernail dug into a stink bug. Talk about gross!

Fortunately, I was in a parking lot and could stop to open my door and shoo what was left of it out.

I don't know how that bug got into my car, but it better not have invited any friends over.

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Bald-Face Hornets

When we were at the Geauga County Fair a couple of weeks ago, they had on display a large paper nest like the one in this photo. I asked the man behind the display what type of nest is was, and he told me it was a bald-face hornet nest.

So when we pulled into the parking lot this morning where we work out, and I saw this particular nest, I knew right away what kind of insect built it. I was brave enough to get a photo, but if I had know then what I know now, I would not have gotten so close.

Bald-face hornets are one of the most aggressive wasps there are. They will fiercely attack, repeatedly stinging, anything that gets within three feet of their nest. I didn't get that close, but I was probably within five feet. This nest is hanging on a branch so low that a tall man would easily be within three feet of it if he walked under it.

Am I the only one who has noticed this thing?

Bald-face hornets are really a type of yellow jacket, and they are beneficial insects because they are carnivores. They eat other insects, including ants, spiders and bees. They can put one of these nests up in less than a month. The queen bee starts the nest by herself. She lays eggs, and when they hatch, the yellow jackets get right to work helping. One of these nests can contain up to 400 workers.

The whole colony will die out during the cold winter months; only the queen will live on to continue her job again next year. Still, I don't know if I would want this nest so close to where people are getting in and out of their cars. I'll be avoiding it, that's for sure.

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Mother Bird

I found the mother bird today and chased her around my front yard until I could get a picture of her.

I know as much about birds as I do flowers, so I cannot identify this one. I know it is not a robin and it is not a cardinal. And it's not a blue jay either.

Can anyone tell me what kind of bird this is? Could it be a Dark-Eyed Junco?

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