Wasp Woman & Protector of Apis Mellifera

10/17/2015

original collage by Maggie Taylor, with head replacement by me :^)

Several weeks ago I reported that one of our three hives had been infested with aerial yellowjackets. I had been hopeful, after a vigilant weekend of using my swarm-capture bee vacuum to suck them up, that they were finished for the summer, but this morning they were back in force...and so was I.
This is how they look after being caught in the act, as they leave the hive with their loot: MAD.
I do not normally have a charge for these little pollinators, but, it seems wasteful for them to demolish one of my hives as they themselves will be dying off for the winter soon. Only the yellowjacket queens winter-over, and emerge in the spring to start a new colony.

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Tracey Byrne~
I spent most of the 1980s and 90s in Alaska
flying airplanes, floating wild rivers, winter camping, raising a wild child, and living off the grid :^)

With my MAT in Advanced Inquiry for Biological Sciences, I've taught K-12 students from north of the Arctic Circle to the Puget Sound Ecoregion, garnering over thirty years experience as a classroom teacher, learning mentor, and private tutor.

Here in Seattle, I am an advocate for environmental stewardship, place-based education, and outdoor play. I share my enthusiasm for birds, bugs, and backyards and have been a featured writer and photographer for Pacific Horticulture. I am a professional reader and reviewer for NetGalley.

All photographs © T. Byrne unless otherwise noted.

Wasp Woman & Protector of Apis Mellifera

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