I finished a mold investigation in an apartment complex today. In one of the vacant units I noted several dead insects on the carpet, and what appeared to be several live bees trying to get out the closed windows. I left them alone, confident they would show the same respect.
Standing next to the front wall of the living room I felt as much as I heard a buzzing or humming coming from the wall. I put my hand on the wall and felt a vibration almost like electrical equipment.
I grabbed the building engineer and told him I thought he had a bee problem in the wall. He came to the unit and witnessed the same sounds and vibrations I did. About an hour later a crew from the city animal control department came. They looked at the live and dead bees and tapped the wall and ceiling and came to the same conclusion. The bees were accessing the interstitial space through weep holes in the brick. The animal control techs pumped in smoke to slow the bees, and then an insecticide to kill them.
Minutes later they cut a hole in the ceiling and thousands of dead bees and chunks of comb fell out.
I felt terrible.
I thought it would become a huge project like on National Geographic or Discovery where they catch the queen bee and relocate the hive. Not this time. They said these were "true" bees and as such were not rare, endangered or valuable.
The honey they produce can not be used for human consumption.
A sad day.
I just finished conducting a pre-demolition asbestos survey on a condemned, 2-story commercial building. In addition to rotted wood structure I observed significant insect activity; either termites or carpenter ants had taken up residence in the wood studs and joists some time ago.
I completed the inspection and sample collection and was sitting on the tailgate of my truck (changing my boots from steel-toed to hikers; much more comfortable) when I felt something bite my left leg. I pulled my pant leg above my knee and saw that I had been bitten by a termite. He must have gotten pinched when I was changing my boots and got pissed off.
Termites normally don't care for flesh, so what attracted him to climb up my leg?
Apparently I'm carrying around more wood in my pants than I had first thought.
COMMENTS
Hah badumbum
*giggles* now that is frelling funny!
LOL Ohhh.. me and you- match in old building heaven. I will bring my camera. :D
Touche'
*shakes head*
*grins evilly* You would say that. *giggles*
lol
COMMENTS
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queenofchaos
23:26 Jul 17 2012
Wowzers! Makes me grateful that is not my house.
Sad day for sure.
PsychWardSiren
23:29 Jul 17 2012
Poor Bees.
TheArtistRose
23:36 Jul 17 2012
Yikes! o.o Poor bees. Though they still scare me any day.
Vampirewitch39
01:08 Jul 18 2012
Wow. Thank god we have never run into that problem. Kind of super creepy.
Oceanne
01:32 Jul 18 2012
I would have been mad as hell at those guys.EVERY bee is valuable.Not for honey,but for pollenation.Im sad too Captain.Our honey bees are in trouble anyway right now,so I dont see how they justified that judgment call.
Not valuable my @$$. :(
birra
03:16 Jul 18 2012
Huh.
Well, at least someone was living there....