FacebookTwitter
Hatrack River Forum   
my profile login | search | faq | forum home

  next oldest topic   next newest topic
» Hatrack River Forum » Active Forums » Books, Films, Food and Culture » Mommy Bugga Bugga (Page 2)

  This topic comprises 4 pages: 1  2  3  4   
Author Topic: Mommy Bugga Bugga
ak
Member
Member # 90

 - posted      Profile for ak   Email ak         Edit/Delete Post 
What is the right name of the things here in the South that are up in trees in the evenings making a very loud noise like "weeeeeeeee-oooooohhhhhh-weeeeeeeeee-ooooooohhhhhhh" over and over?
Posts: 2843 | Registered: A Long Time Ago!  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
mackillian
Member
Member # 586

 - posted      Profile for mackillian   Email mackillian         Edit/Delete Post 
Cicadas.
Posts: 14745 | Registered: Dec 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
KEGE
Member
Member # 424

 - posted      Profile for KEGE   Email KEGE         Edit/Delete Post 
Jenny,

Do you field (no pun intended) garden plant questions too?

[Smile]

Posts: 874 | Registered: Oct 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Jenny Gardener
Member
Member # 903

 - posted      Profile for Jenny Gardener   Email Jenny Gardener         Edit/Delete Post 
Sure! Start a garden thread, and you'll find me there! Also, we have many other good gardeners at Hatrack that might come to your aid.
Posts: 3141 | Registered: Apr 2000  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
xnera
Member
Member # 187

 - posted      Profile for xnera   Email xnera         Edit/Delete Post 
*bump*

I have seen a few bugs in my house this year that I don't recognize. Usually we get silverfish and maybe a few small spiders.

These new guys are about a centimeter long (maybe a bit larger), black, with round, substantial bodies. It appears to be some kind of spider as it has eight legs, but I suppose it could be a beetle as well. Both times I've seen it, it's been in my library -- once crawling up the wall near the window, and the other time crawling on the open floor beneath my desk. Now, the library is where Raina's food and litterbox are, but I haven't seen the bugs near either of them. But that might be what's attracting them. Have not seen them in other areas of the house. Any ideas what they are?

Posts: 1805 | Registered: Jun 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
filetted
Member
Member # 5048

 - posted      Profile for filetted   Email filetted         Edit/Delete Post 
arachnids or no?
Posts: 1733 | Registered: Apr 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Sopwith
Member
Member # 4640

 - posted      Profile for Sopwith   Email Sopwith         Edit/Delete Post 
Recent rains have driven tons of ants into our house. What's a good all-natural, non-chemical way to get them to go away?
Posts: 2848 | Registered: Feb 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
filetted
Member
Member # 5048

 - posted      Profile for filetted   Email filetted         Edit/Delete Post 
ants?

pour sugar in a place you don't want them to be...

Posts: 1733 | Registered: Apr 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
filetted
Member
Member # 5048

 - posted      Profile for filetted   Email filetted         Edit/Delete Post 
err... (flish makes an ass out himself even giving good advice)
Posts: 1733 | Registered: Apr 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Jenny Gardener
Member
Member # 903

 - posted      Profile for Jenny Gardener   Email Jenny Gardener         Edit/Delete Post 
Eight-legged beasties about a centimeter long? Probably a spider you haven't seen before. There are many body types in the spider world. There are even spiders that mimic insects.

Ants: Flish - actually, your idea might be valid. By giving the ants an out-of-the-way feeding station, you will be keeping them away from other areas. Of course, you would then want to accompany this tactic with anal cleanliness in all the other areas of the house.

The first step in getting rid of ants (or at least reducing their numbers) is to thoroughly clean the areas where you have seen them. Use vinegar or a strong-smelling cleaner. I often put essential oils (lemongrass, citronella, mint) in my cleaning water. Ants use scent to lay down their trails and communicate with each other, so putting down something smelly disrupts their normal patterns. Next, be careful to not leave any food out. If the problem gets really bad, try putting Terro (poison) traps out - or make your own with borax and sugar water. Diotomaceous earth is another "natural" but harmful substance. Read up on diotomaceous earth or borax carefully before you use them!!

I, too, had an ant invasion earlier this year. I cleaned but didn't really do a very good job about maintaining the level of cleanliness it usually takes to get rid of ants. However, I have a healthy population of house spiders and centipedes (they come from my crawlspace at night). I just made sure not to clean my corners. And the problem took care of itself. I try to maintain a reasonably clean kitchen, and I don't go ballistic over a few ants here and there. And I did ask them to find their food outside (Hey, people talk to their pets and claim they understand. Why not try talking to insects?) Ants really aren't unclean animals, and they do help get rid of food wastes that might otherwise rot and grow bacteria.

Good luck! Let me know if any of these ideas work for you!

Posts: 3141 | Registered: Apr 2000  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
KEGE
Member
Member # 424

 - posted      Profile for KEGE   Email KEGE         Edit/Delete Post 
Jenny,

What can I do about the Japanese beetles that are turning the leaves on my Morning Glory vine in the garden to skeletons?

Why does this happen every June the past couple of years? Where are these bugs coming from? (and don't say Japan anyone [Roll Eyes] )

Posts: 874 | Registered: Oct 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Belle
Member
Member # 2314

 - posted      Profile for Belle   Email Belle         Edit/Delete Post 
I need the best method for getting rid of a yellow jacket nest in the ground - there is one right by my bridge that leads to our property across the creek and the kids use it to get to our play center back there.

Also, if you're allergic to one type of wasp are you allergic to all kinds? I've had allergic reactions to wasp stings but I don't know if that means I'm also allergic to yellow jackets, hornets, and bees.

Posts: 14428 | Registered: Aug 2001  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Jenny Gardener
Member
Member # 903

 - posted      Profile for Jenny Gardener   Email Jenny Gardener         Edit/Delete Post 
Japanese beetles - They're actually quite pretty, but they do indeed have a fondness for flowers. They like to eat roses and hibiscus, too. They arrive in your yard the same time every year because that is when they are all grown up. They've spent the last year in your lawn as white grubs eating grass roots. Last year and this, I haven't had any problems with them, although my neighbors have been raided. First and foremost, never buy those Japanese beetle traps! They release pheromones, which lure all the Japanese beetles to your yard. Then the bags fill up with dead bodies which stink and liquefy and are generally nasty, and there's no more room for all the beetles you've attracted. The best thing you can do is to have a diverse backyard habitat with many predators. Also, I have read that the flower called "4 o'clocks" is poisonous to Japanese beetles. I do have this flower in my garden.

Yellow Jackets - Ooh, Belle, I've never had that problem before. Thank goodness you know where the nest is! Are the bees aggressive, defending their nest? If so, you may have to get rid of them with poisons. I think that you'd better check with your doctor on the allergy thing, but be extra-careful, just to be on the safe side. You might have to carry an Epi-pen if you are severely allergic. Most of the time, stinging insects are content to leave you alone, but they will defend their homes and babies. If a stinging insect comes near you, hold very still and think "tree". The stinging insect will usually realize you are not a threat and go about her business. Sometimes, she will land on you, but will not sting unless you make a sudden movement or otherwise make her feel threatened. The exception to this scenario usually occurs when you are too near a nest.

Posts: 3141 | Registered: Apr 2000  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
mackillian
Member
Member # 586

 - posted      Profile for mackillian   Email mackillian         Edit/Delete Post 
Or you sit on said bug.

Ow.

Posts: 14745 | Registered: Dec 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Annie
Member
Member # 295

 - posted      Profile for Annie   Email Annie         Edit/Delete Post 
I hate bugs. I think they're really creepy - especially beetles. Especially beetles that fly around with all their appendages hanging out, standing upright in the air and clicking menacingly at you.
My mom's house gets infested by pine beetles (it's a log house), and not only do I find their poky little carapaces in the sleeves of my sweaters, but they give off a distinctly sweet odor and I can tell when there's one in a ten-foot radius. My mom thinks I'm paranoid, but I know they're there - just waiting to jump out and fly directly at my face.

They've even started infesting my dreams. How do I properly fumigate my subconcious?

Posts: 8504 | Registered: Aug 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
xnera
Member
Member # 187

 - posted      Profile for xnera   Email xnera         Edit/Delete Post 
*is reminded of the Northern Exposure episode with Maggie and the dust mites*

*wanders off to see if Northern Exposure has ever been released on DVD, and if so, add it to the Netflix queue*

Posts: 1805 | Registered: Jun 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
KEGE
Member
Member # 424

 - posted      Profile for KEGE   Email KEGE         Edit/Delete Post 
I agree with Annie that beetles are mostly creepy. True the Japanese beetles DO have an irredescent shell which in the bug world is probably the equivalent of a 1950s Dior ballgown - but once you remember how CRUNCHY they are .... then being from South Louisiana you start thinking ROACH. And then crunchy, flying BIG roach and then it's all downhill from there!

(at this point you're thinking - HER dreams obviously need fumigating TOO).

Posts: 874 | Registered: Oct 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
mackillian
Member
Member # 586

 - posted      Profile for mackillian   Email mackillian         Edit/Delete Post 
I keep finding these little tiny black bugs with wings (close to flies, but not huge and icky) all OVER the lampshade next to my bed.

What gives?!

Posts: 14745 | Registered: Dec 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Noemon
Member
Member # 1115

 - posted      Profile for Noemon   Email Noemon         Edit/Delete Post 
I've used a method similar to what flish suggests to control ants for 3 years or so, and it's always worked wonderfully. cut down a yogurt cup, pour in a fair amount of honey, and set it right next to wherever the ants are coming into the house. With such delicious, high energy food available right there, they rarely bother going any further. Of course, quite a few of them drown themselves in the honey. It seems to have an intoxicating effect on them. A ring of ants will be standing around the pool of honey, drinking, and then out of the blue one of them will push off, diving into the pool and swimming completely submerged into the center of it. It looks like a very deliberate act. Jenny, do you know anything about honey being an intoxicant to ants?
Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Jenny Gardener
Member
Member # 903

 - posted      Profile for Jenny Gardener   Email Jenny Gardener         Edit/Delete Post 
Bug dreams - Hmm. Perhaps the Infinite is trying to tell you something. A scientist, when asked what Nature has to say about God, once claimed that God was "inordinately fond of beetles". In a book I read, insects are messages of the Divine. Ask yourself what these bugs mean to you symbolically. Also, study them and learn their ways. Find something to appreciate about them. Why do they bother you so? What does this say about you and the issues you face? After all, the insects are just minding their own business, doing what they were born to do. What are you projecting onto them? As you do dreamwork and soulwork, you may find yourself growing. (At the moment, I am doing soulwork with mosquitoes).

Beetles - I adore beetles. They are so colorful and varied. Have you ever seen a tiger beetle, flashing green and gold in the sunlight? Beautiful! And they fill so many important niches.

Crunchy - All insects have exoskeletons. This is why they crunch when you step on them. Avoid the willies by not intentionally crushing insects.

Little black bugs - The poor things are probably disoriented and confused. They are attracted to the heat and light. See if you can catch them (a sanitary method is to use a paper cup and an index card) and release them outdoors. Also, see if you can turn off the light at night to give them an opportunity to go elsewhere.

Honey and ants - I don't know! I have observed the same behavior with ants and sugar-poison solutions. Perhaps they do get euphoric and die in bliss.

Posts: 3141 | Registered: Apr 2000  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Annie
Member
Member # 295

 - posted      Profile for Annie   Email Annie         Edit/Delete Post 
I eat my ants with honey;
I've done it all my life.
It makes the ants taste funny,
But it keeps them on my knife.

Posts: 8504 | Registered: Aug 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
KEGE
Member
Member # 424

 - posted      Profile for KEGE   Email KEGE         Edit/Delete Post 
I always heard that rhyme with "peas" instead of "ants"! Weird, but both would be gross.

How do those ants ALWAYS know when my daughter has left her plate on her floor, a cheese wrapper or even some crumbs? Somehow they get the signal from outside and organize a raiding party to invade and nosh? What a mess! I hope they are gone this morning!

[Roll Eyes]

Posts: 874 | Registered: Oct 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Elizabeth
Member
Member # 5218

 - posted      Profile for Elizabeth   Email Elizabeth         Edit/Delete Post 
Jenny,
Here is a gift for you, if you haven't read it yet. For all you beetlephobes out there, beware the light o' the moon!
Liz
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20030702/sc_afp/science_animals_insects_030702190111

Posts: 10890 | Registered: May 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Elizabeth
Member
Member # 5218

 - posted      Profile for Elizabeth   Email Elizabeth         Edit/Delete Post 
Jenny or Anyone,

HELP! Does anyone have an effective, before-calling-the-exterminator way of getting rid of two giant carpenter ant communities?

They are both in sandy areas, near the house, maybe ten feet from the house. The nest, or town, is about six feet in diameter.

Liz

Posts: 10890 | Registered: May 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Jenny Gardener
Member
Member # 903

 - posted      Profile for Jenny Gardener   Email Jenny Gardener         Edit/Delete Post 
Ants are very sensitive to chemical signals. If one ant picks up the scent of food, she will then communicate with her sisters, and soon you'll have a whole troop of ants speedily taking care of business. You might look at your household ants as a blessing - they keep dropped food from sitting around long enough to rot and carry disease. They alert you to the problem. I'm sure they'll be gone soon, after they have made good use of all that dropped energy source!

Carpenter ants - Wow! You sure don't want them in your woodwork. If I were you, I'd read up as much as I could and observe the ants to find out what they're interested in. Learn their preferences, and see if you can subtly change their environment to encourage them to move further from your home.

Posts: 3141 | Registered: Apr 2000  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
celia60
Member
Member # 2039

 - posted      Profile for celia60   Email celia60         Edit/Delete Post 
japanese beetles eating everything! nursery says 4 o'clocks can't be transplanted, have to be grown from seeds!

basal dead, half of cayennes dead, parsley dying right now.

[Frown]

Posts: 3956 | Registered: Jun 2001  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Elizabeth
Member
Member # 5218

 - posted      Profile for Elizabeth   Email Elizabeth         Edit/Delete Post 
Celia,
Try this: tobacco(crush a few cigarettes), crushed chile peppers, garlic, a bit of soap(shaved Ivory is best), mixed with water in a spray bottle. Spray the plants daily, esp. after a rain.

If this does not work, try insecticidal soap, which is not natural, but better than lots of chemical options.

If they are Japanese beetles, they are the beetle form of the lawn grub.(I think Jenny said this already.) What you might notice is an icrease in the mole population in your lawn. Let them dig! they are eating the grubs.

Liz

Posts: 10890 | Registered: May 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
KEGE
Member
Member # 424

 - posted      Profile for KEGE   Email KEGE         Edit/Delete Post 
What the heck IS insecticidal soap? I'm always hearing it recommended and can't find it.

What name and brand? I once tried the dishsoap mixed with water tryin to kill aphids and it killed my impatients instead!

Got back week ago from 2 week vacation and the beetles have decimated my morning glory vine!

Lead me to the insecticial soap, someone!!!

Posts: 874 | Registered: Oct 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Elizabeth
Member
Member # 5218

 - posted      Profile for Elizabeth   Email Elizabeth         Edit/Delete Post 
The insecticidal soap I know is "Safer." it comes in a white spray bottle.

Here is a link from White Flower Farm for a cayenne pepper wax spray. It is natural, always the best bet.

http://www.shepherdseeds.com/7840-product.html

Also, gros as it is, hand picking the beetles, and dropping the poor b@*tards in a can of kerosene is the best way, as they are not around to reproduce.

(sorry, Jenny)

Liz

Posts: 10890 | Registered: May 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Elizabeth
Member
Member # 5218

 - posted      Profile for Elizabeth   Email Elizabeth         Edit/Delete Post 
Hmm, another thought. Both of you beetle-infested gardeners could get a floating row cover for the vegetables. Those can also be bought at the link provided above. It just keeps everything off the plants, but enough sunlight and rain still gets through. You might want to do that, but only after getting rid of the beetles first.
Liz

[ July 26, 2003, 09:41 AM: Message edited by: Elizabeth ]

Posts: 10890 | Registered: May 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
celia60
Member
Member # 2039

 - posted      Profile for celia60   Email celia60         Edit/Delete Post 
Hmm...you're advice came a little late. I wish I had taken pictures of this infestation. We went from zero to hundreds of beetles over a time of about 3 days. Yay for neighbors who got those stupid traps.

Once we had that many, my husband figured that putting in a trap might be our only option. I was hesitant. I remember the things from my friend's mother's garden. This was her solution after everyone else on her street already had them. He set it up and left town. (yes, left me all alone) I wrote that last post after coming home the second day the trap was up. Our plants looked less like plants than like big shimmering moving masses. I went out to see if the trap was helping at all and the bag was completely full! (2 days!)

I went to the nursery and asked for an insecticide I could safely use on herbs and vegetables. They gave me something called Sevin, with a big long list of how often it can be applies and how long until you can safely harvest after application. For our mix of crops, we can only apply the stuff twice per season and need to wait 14 days after the last application to harvest. It is to be applied when the most bugs are on, which the nursery tells me is during the early evening.

In hat, gloves and long sleeves, I venture into the swarming mass of beetles that evening armed with Sevin, holding my breathe.

Have I mentioned that I am afraid of centipedes? No, there weren't any here, but I mention that because, at a certain level, bugs is bugs. I have no experience to base my fear of centipedes on, or none that I can remember. I just know that when I see them walking, I can feel them walking on me and it's hard for me to breathe.

I coat our plants from the recommended distance. From all sides. Being careful not to get any on myself. On the trip back in, I coat the trap and the several square feet surrounding the trap, which is also covered in beetles.

My skin has been crawling for most of this experience. I am certain that, inspite of my own coverings, I am now, surely, covered in these insects myself. As soon as I close the door, I drop the spray and throw my top layer of clothing to the ground. Nothing on me.

This is a kill on contact spray. A few minutes wait and I am greeted with the sound of rain. The soft pitter patter of dead bugs falling onto concrete.

It's after 11 before I can find the courage to go back outside. As quickly as I can, I stuff the entire trap assembly into a garbage bag. I try my best to ignore the crunching sound of my walking. I slip that bag into a secong bag, toss it into our garbage can, top it with every bit of garbage in the house and hope that will keep the beetles from finding it in the garage.

I've seen about 5 beetles total since that night. I don't plan on doing a second application. They killed almost half our plants before I got them. What is left we can start to eat in a few days. Next year we'll add Four-O-Clocks to our garden and keep your spray in mind.

I am sorry that I failed Mommy Bugga Bugga, but at least I got to keep some of the garden.

Posts: 3956 | Registered: Jun 2001  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Elizabeth
Member
Member # 5218

 - posted      Profile for Elizabeth   Email Elizabeth         Edit/Delete Post 
Celia,

Poor you! Poor bugs! Poor plants!

Yuck!

Liz

Posts: 10890 | Registered: May 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Godric
Member
Member # 4587

 - posted      Profile for Godric   Email Godric         Edit/Delete Post 
Help! I've got ants in my pants!

[Big Grin]

Sorry. I couldn't resist...

Posts: 1295 | Registered: Jan 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
KEGE
Member
Member # 424

 - posted      Profile for KEGE   Email KEGE         Edit/Delete Post 
oh Celia -

what a nightmare! I'll just let those beetles eat my morning glories!! That's nothing compared to your experience!

eeeeeekkkkkk [Eek!]

Posts: 874 | Registered: Oct 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Jenny Gardener
Member
Member # 903

 - posted      Profile for Jenny Gardener   Email Jenny Gardener         Edit/Delete Post 
Dang! That sounds HORRIBLE! There is a time and place for poisons, and it sounds like you found it. You might want to get your lawn treated for the grubs that are surely waiting to resurface next year. I mourn your lost plants, and I am so sorry that the invasive beetles were so numerous. I wonder what caused such a plethora of bugs? It sounds like something is terribly out of balance in your local community's environment. I hope next year is better.

Your own Mommy Bugga Bugga has been intrigued to observe a greater aggressiveness in the local wasps and ants since the flood. They are starting to calm down a bit now that the floodwaters have retreated, but for a while we had to be more careful around our wasps. Fortunately, I've been noticing a new kind of spider web near the wasp nests. Bless that beastie! My family has worked to clean up and replant the gardens, and things seem to be more peaceful now.

Posts: 3141 | Registered: Apr 2000  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
ak
Member
Member # 90

 - posted      Profile for ak   Email ak         Edit/Delete Post 
Why are there no lightning bugs in Baton Rouge? This is so sad! Toretha has never seen lightning bugs! How can that be? She's only just over there (waves vaguely toward the west). It makes no sense!
Posts: 2843 | Registered: A Long Time Ago!  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Noemon
Member
Member # 1115

 - posted      Profile for Noemon   Email Noemon         Edit/Delete Post 
I started to create a new thread for this question, but then I remembered this one.

My house is infested with spiders, which is probably a good thing, since I'm sure that I wouldn't want whatever it is they're eating crawling around unchecked.

I just noticed that there is a single strand of web anchored to a chair and my laptop's cord, hanging parallel to the ground about two feet off the floor. The gap that it spans is about a foot and a half or so long. So how did the spider accomplish that?

My high school zoology teacher claimed that they accomplised this kind of thing by archoring their web, dropping, and letting the wind blow them to a second anchor point. Since there isn't any kind of breeze in here, that isn't a possibility. The only other methods I can think of would be jumping, which I don't think most web weaving spiders are really capable of, dropping a foot or so and then using their body as the weight of a pendulum, eventually swinging to their target, which I've never seen or heard of a spider doing, or archoring it, dropping to the ground, climbing up to the chair, drawing back in the excess web, and then creating the second anchor point when it got to the right place. The problem with that last theory, which is the most plausible I can come up with, is that the floor is a rough woven mat, and it seems to me that the line would be likely to catch on it, foiling the spider's plan.

So, is it this last theory, and the spider just got lucky, or can you think of an explanation that I haven't?

Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
mackillian
Member
Member # 586

 - posted      Profile for mackillian   Email mackillian         Edit/Delete Post 
I'd just like you to know that a few days ago I found a BIG EFFING SPIDER IN MY BED! [Mad]
Posts: 14745 | Registered: Dec 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Noemon
Member
Member # 1115

 - posted      Profile for Noemon   Email Noemon         Edit/Delete Post 
[Eek!] mac! I hate finding anything like that in my bed. I end up awake for hours, imagining that I'm feeling little legs creeping across me. That always sucks. Was it alive or dead?

When I was in college I lived in a place that was just infested with brown recluses, and more than once I found the bodies of them in my bed where I'd rolled over on them in the night.

Foolishly, I never thought much about it until one bit me in the night. I woke up with what looked like a third nipple on my chest. It hurt, but it wasn't as bad as some brown recluse bites I've heard of people getting.

Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Noemon
Member
Member # 1115

 - posted      Profile for Noemon   Email Noemon         Edit/Delete Post 
Luckily for me, the spiders (and everything else with an exoskeleton) seem to consider my bedroom off limits. They really love my sunroom though. I was cleaning the other day, and I was startled that by the time I'd finished with the room the first windows I'd cleared of cobwebs were once again fully equipped for bug catching.
Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
mackillian
Member
Member # 586

 - posted      Profile for mackillian   Email mackillian         Edit/Delete Post 
oh EEEEEW.

It was fully alive. I had to chase it with a napkin and try not to squish it ON my white down comforter. [Mad]

Not quite as bad as the house infested with scorpions (we found them in shoes, showers, sink, on the wall, in light fixtures...), but STILL. *shudder*

IN MY BED!

Posts: 14745 | Registered: Dec 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Noemon
Member
Member # 1115

 - posted      Profile for Noemon   Email Noemon         Edit/Delete Post 
Infested with scorpions? Now that would freak me out. I've never been around scorpions except in control circumstances. How poisonous was their sting?
Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
mackillian
Member
Member # 586

 - posted      Profile for mackillian   Email mackillian         Edit/Delete Post 
Not very, it was Georgia, not the desert. They're just scary little bastards, and it HURTS when they sting. o_O
Posts: 14745 | Registered: Dec 1999  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Noemon
Member
Member # 1115

 - posted      Profile for Noemon   Email Noemon         Edit/Delete Post 
Huh, that's interesting. Remind me never to move to any of the scorpion infested areas of Georgia! I've actually never been stung by anything. Bitten by various things, but never stung, so I can't quite imagine what that would feel like.
Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Ryuko
Member
Member # 5125

 - posted      Profile for Ryuko   Email Ryuko         Edit/Delete Post 
I have an insect-related question. If we found a way to kill every mosquito on earth, would it disrupt the ecosystem *too* much?
Posts: 4816 | Registered: Apr 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Duragon C. Mikado
Member
Member # 2815

 - posted      Profile for Duragon C. Mikado   Email Duragon C. Mikado         Edit/Delete Post 
Mack, keep telling yourself you actually saw the spider, because what you really probably saw was merely its molted carapace that happened to jiggle and move a bit when you blew it around with subtle air pressure changes.. In reality the real spider is probably still underneath or inside your matress with a few eggs ready to hatch thousands of lovely little guys who will crawl all over and in you in your sleep.

Pleasant Dreams.

[Sleep]

[ August 11, 2003, 05:51 AM: Message edited by: Duragon C. Mikado ]

Posts: 622 | Registered: Dec 2001  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Elizabeth
Member
Member # 5218

 - posted      Profile for Elizabeth   Email Elizabeth         Edit/Delete Post 
Duragon, that was just mean. Poor Mack. You know only hundreds of the babies will make it, not thousands. (sorry, Mack)

Ryuko: The death of every mosquito on earth would change the balance very much, I think.

Posts: 10890 | Registered: May 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
ak
Member
Member # 90

 - posted      Profile for ak   Email ak         Edit/Delete Post 
They say that the only reason a lot of the big species in subsaharan Africa have survived is because the malaria keeps people from moving to a lot of the areas. I suppose if we could kill all the mosquitos, malaria would also be gone. I don't think you can change anything without changing everything, it seems like. [Smile]

I know that insects far outweigh mammals pound for pound, acre for acre, in sheer biomass. Arthropods are really the most successful phylum of many celled creatures on earth. We keep battling them but so far they've never even noticed yet that they're in a war.

Posts: 2843 | Registered: A Long Time Ago!  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
ak
Member
Member # 90

 - posted      Profile for ak   Email ak         Edit/Delete Post 
Mommy Bugga Bugga? Are you still around? I'm still waiting for answers to several of my questions.
Posts: 2843 | Registered: A Long Time Ago!  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Jenny Gardener
Member
Member # 903

 - posted      Profile for Jenny Gardener   Email Jenny Gardener         Edit/Delete Post 
I'm here!

ak - No lightning bugs in Baton Rouge? I don't know. Perhaps if you study up on fireflies and their habits, you'll find something missing in Baton Rouge that they like. Also, mack answered your noisy bug question correctly. Anything else you want to know? And thanks for bringing back this thread!

Amazing Spiders. Aren't they cool? If you ever spot a spider in your house, stop and watch it a while. They are incredibly fascinating. Better than t.v. I don't know the magic by which they manage to make such beautifully perfect webs. I think it has a lot to do with try, try again. There are actually two kinds of spider silk - sticky and non-sticky. I believe the non-sticky is what the spider uses for its structural supports, while the sticky is used for the bug-catching parts.

Killing every mosquito on earth. Yes, a bad thing. Do you really want to muck up the food chain for fish, birds, and other wildlife? Not to mention those of us who eat fish. And then what will happen when our immune systems are not up to snuff because they're not exposed to weird things borne by the mosquitoes? It seems our immune systems work better when they're actually actively fighting off things. And really, as annoying as mosquitoes are, all they do is make you itchy for a while. Why do you want to destroy every single member of the species, anyway?

Posts: 3141 | Registered: Apr 2000  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
  This topic comprises 4 pages: 1  2  3  4   

   Close Topic   Feature Topic   Move Topic   Delete Topic next oldest topic   next newest topic
 - Printer-friendly view of this topic
Hop To:


Contact Us | Hatrack River Home Page

Copyright © 2008 Hatrack River Enterprises Inc. All rights reserved.
Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.


Powered by Infopop Corporation
UBB.classic™ 6.7.2