I found it! I know what bees have taken over parts of my yard now. They are called carpenter bees and are generally not aggressive. I guess all that changes when a doberman tries to eat you however.
This is an actual picture of a rather large carpenter bee that I found online. This guy is just a little bigger than the one my dog was dueling with. They tend to live in wood, hence the name carpenter. Just so happens, a few feet from the fight till the death, there was a large piece of bark that had obviously had something eating at it previously. I'm assuming one of the dogs heard the bees inside a tree and pulled the loose bark off and one of the bees came with it. I really should've known what this was as my dad lives in a log cabin and has had tons of problems with these bees but I've never seen one up close before. At least I don't have to be terrified of having one chase me through the yard like some of those bees and wasps tend to do.
For more information on carpenter bees, which are native to the entire US and can live up to three years, visit the following website. http://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/pollinators/pollinator-of-the-month/carpenter_bees.shtml
3 comments:
We've been so very careful to not disturb our bees in our little urban corner of the world. Great picture. Sue
Jamie, my folks have a log cabin, and they have these guys, too!! You're right, they're normally not aggressive, but they're BIG. Dad will try to swat 'em down with a fly swatter, and while they're on the ground, he gets out a pocket knife and cuts their head off. They're so big they're hard to kill!
Those aren't the same thing we have buzzing around sometimes on our deck. I think those might really be hornets.
Stay sting-free!
Beth
I hate carpenter bees, they are territorial and will stand their ground in one spot and buzz you if you get in their spot. My husband says they used to whack em with tennis rackets! When I was a kid my dad and me would have target practice with the bb gun on them. They are very destructive and cause a lot of damage to wood. Kelly
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