Monkey Chains of Bees and Insect Bivouacking

[emo_snal]

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Special thanks to furzicle for her assistance as videographer. She braved the bees and survived mostly unscathed -- a bee pooped on her ipad. The below is the original impromptu video I made with my phone that kind of gave me the idea, but it has a much better monkey chain formation.

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Comments

[penpusher]

The Hive mind is strong!

[lrig_rorrim]

That was a neat video! I'm struck particularly by how slow and gentle your motions were with the bees - it makes sense, but it hadn't really occurred to me that that's part of what's involved in having a good relationship with those particular insects, until I saw you doing it.

I've had first-hand experience with fire ants balling up in water and forming rafts. I grew up in Florida, right on a river, and went walking during a flood one time. That... was not my smartest move. One of those fire and balls and I collided (in my defense, I tried to get out of the way! But there were currents and I was clumsy) and ohhhhhh ouch.

[emo_snal]

Oh wow, colliding with an ant-fireball in the middle of a river sounds quite unforunate!!

And yes, I try to move more like a plant, less like an animal. (: And try not to breath on them -- they can sense carbon dioxide and know it somes from animals.

[halfshellvenus]

I kept waiting for the bees to sting you-- as gentle as you were, pushing them in the slightest sometimes makes them panic. I've had too many bees down the front of my biking jersey to think otherwise. ;)

[emo_snal]

Pshhh nonsense! Bees are little sweethearts! (: The best is the feeling of all their little bee hands holding on to you when you put your hand in the pile of bees. (:

[halfshellvenus]

The best is the feeling of all their little bee hands holding on to you
Unless you have insect/spider-phobia, and the feeling of little legs on you freaks you out. o_O

[emo_snal]

Though I'm still not to keen on having them climb in my ear.....

[eternal_ot]

Whoa! you are quite a daredevil...Amazing feat that!! I was waiting with baited breath there...Awesome video!!

[hosticle_fifer]

Bees poop? I mean I guess everything poops, but when you think of the average size of a bee...would you even notice? ;)