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[CDX]

We should import some Japanese giant hornets then.

yes

That's one true trooper bro bee, rescueing his beebro.

I saw that documentary were that .gif came from

The whole entire hive was massacred in a few hours by (I think) only 6 of those Giant Hornets.

I would actually be interested to see how an encounter between African honeybees and Japanese giant hornets would play out.

Japanese honeybees have very specialized behavior to counter the hornets, obviously African honeybees would be just as hapless as Western honeybees in that regard. But would their more aggressive behavior make a difference? Maybe they could penetrate the hornet armor easier?

Since the African bees tend to swarm more than honey bees, I think they'd put up more of a fight than the European honey bees. But I don't know who would win, that would be interesting.

 

[MidgarBlowedUp]

We should import some Japanese giant hornets then.

we already have the European wasp, vespa cabro, and yellow jackets, and red wasps where I live. We don't need a bigger version of the assholes we already have. I'd bet a swarm of killer bees could destroy a hive of japanese hornets (or maybe not). Killer Bees are the devils work but, the Asian Hornet can and will literally melt your skin and muscles.

 

[Ignis Fatuus]

Since the African bees tend to swarm more than honey bees, I think they'd put up more of a fight than the European honey bees. But I don't know who would win, that would be interesting.

The swarming wouldn't make a difference unless their stingers are better at penetrating the hornet armor. I think that's what it comes down to.

If I had to bet I'd say that the hornets would still ruin their shit. Conventional bee weapons are not prepared for that carapace.

I'd bet a swarm of killer bees could destroy a hive of japanese hornets

:lol

10,000 killer bees would be lucky to fend off 6 Japanese hornets.

 

[Alcoholikaust]

holy mother of god

these must have mutated the same way godzilla did....right?

 

[Ignis Fatuus]

holy mother of god

these must have mutated the same way godzilla did....right?

The most interesting thing is how Japanese honeybees deal with these suckers.

They trap them and literally cook them alive. Stingers are no use. The Japanese honeybees have learned.

 

[Kinyou]

 

[CornBurrito]

Queens are the only females.
Then you have breeding males.
Then you have unsexed drones.

How are they unsexed drones? No X or Y chromsomes? How does that work?

 

[MidgarBlowedUp]

The swarming wouldn't make a difference unless their stingers are better at penetrating the hornet armor. I think that's what it comes down to.

If I had to bet I'd say that the hornets would still ruin their shit. Conventional bee weapons are not prepared for that carapace.


:lol

10,000 killer bees would be lucky to fend off 6 Japanese hornets.

I don't know about that. Killer bees are incredibly aggressive. I think it would just depend how well the hornets armor would hold up against the stings and bites of the killer bees. The videos I see of Japanese hornets taking out colonies of honey bee hives just looks totally opposite of what killer bees do. They all swarm and attack, you wouldn't have honey bees walking around the hive like in the videos. What you would see are thousands of honey bees covering the killer bees. If the armor holds up then the hornets might win. My guess is they would retreat.

 

[Ignis Fatuus]

I think it would just depend how well the hornets armor would hold up against the stings and bites of the killer bees.

Fun fact, bees don't have bites. That's why the hornets can just walk around chomping heads off like a bunch of lawnmowers while the bees have fuck all in response. Bee stingers just don't tend to be effective against giant hornets and while the African bees might be more aggressive in behavior, I don't think their stingers are any better adapted to deal with thick armor.

 

[Shai-Tan]

that documentary made it seem like the japanese bees evolved that behavior. other bees wouldn't necessarily do that

 

[Haly]

This is breaking my heart.

 

[Ignis Fatuus]

that documentary made it seem like the japanese bees evolved that behavior. other bees wouldn't necessarily do that

Right, the cooking alive stuff is a highly specialized response. No other species of bee is going to know how to do that.

 

[Escape Goat]

Love the subtle thread title change.

Its not been changed.

 

[evil solrac v3.0]

yes

no

*Big Boss salute*
a true hero, saving his Bee pal like that.... :'(

 

[Nikodemos]

Right, the cooking alive stuff is a highly specialized response. No other species of bee is going to know how to do that.

We evidently need some enterprising Japanese to set up one of those Bug Fight-type things between a Giant Hornet troop and an Africanised beehive. For science, obviously.

 

[MIMIC]

Swarms are scary shit. I accidentally disturbed a hive in my backyard when I was a kid. The bees swarmed me and my brother. They chases us into the house and stung the shit out of us.

There were even bees in our underwear @_@

 

[Giggzy]

A few years back my buddy and I went on a hike in southern California. It was about a 5 mile hike to the top, switchback after switchback. Along the way we were getting annoyed by a lone bee flying around us. It didn't seem to bother my friend but I was getting agitated, so I took a couple swipes at the bastard. It disappeared. All was well.

As we were coming up to the peak of the mountain we decided to rest underneath a tree and have a snack and some water. I sit down on a rock and pull out my sandwich. As I'm about to take a bite a bee lands right on top. I freak out like a wimp and throw my sandwich on the floor and start trying to kill it. BAD MISTAKE.

Ten seconds later we hear a loud roar coming from the peak. The sound grows louder and louder each second. Two more bees start flying around me. I start flailing my arms at them. Ten more bees show up. I transform into a tornado trying to kill them all. Then the unimaginable happens. A black cloud is racing right towards us. Realizing that this is a fight we can't win, we pick up our packs and start sprinting down the mountain. Bees are piling onto my head, neck, and back. I'm getting stung left and right, but adrenaline is pumping through me cancelling out any feeling I should have had. My friend is propelling his hand across my back like a broom sweeping away as many bees as he can. We ran the fastest mile and a half we have ever done.

Finally, they leave us(me) alone. We're both gasping for air after that long sprint. I'm starting to feel nauseas. My vision is blurring, knees are buckling. I bend over and hurl. Everything that came in that day also exited. It surprisingly makes me feel better. We continue our descend, finally reaching the car. We assess the damage. 26 stings. My friend has zero. I was the primary target. You would think I'd have some sort of fear after this traumatic experience but it's quite the opposite. I feel at one with the bees, like that was my hazing to become accepted into their brotherhood. I have a strong admiration for them now. I will always remember that day clearly.

 

[Sub_Level]

You would have to pay me a thousand bucks just to do something like that. And have nearby medical personnel ready.

 

[8byte]

BEADS!

Bees?

BEADS!

Beads?

Gob isn't on board.

 

[Dragoon En Regalia]

If Japanese hornets invaded Texas, our flower populations would probably decline. Poor honeybees would be fucked.

 

[speculawyer]

I remember seeing Attack of the Killer Bees at a Drive-In.

Perhaps it is time for a new Killer Bee horror movie.

Edit: It was just called "The Bees"
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075620/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_24

There were all sorts of shows about killers bees in the late 1970's because that is when some Africanized bees started coming up from Mexico & South America.

 

[Ignis Fatuus]

If Japanese hornets invaded Texas, our flower populations would probably decline. Poor honeybees would be fucked.

At least you'd be rid of the killer bees!

Unless they teamed up to make you miserable.

 

[MidgarBlowedUp]

Fun fact, bees don't have bites. That's why the hornets can just walk around chomping heads off like a bunch of lawnmowers while the bees have fuck all in response. Bee stingers just don't tend to be effective against giant hornets and while the African bees might be more aggressive in behavior, I don't think their stingers are any better adapted to deal with thick armor.

No, bees can and do bite as well as sting. Both ends also have venom. Africanized honey bees have a 20-30x faster response time to intruders than normal honey bees. They also sting 10x faster and at 10x the frequency of regular honey bees. The hives are usually larger too, upwards of 100,000+. I honesty expect the hornets to retreat. Then again, maybe their armor would hold up, I dunno.

 

[Escape Goat]

I remember seeing Attack of the Killer Bees at a Drive-In.

Perhaps it is time for a new Killer Bee horror movie.

Lets Kickstart that. Bees will dominate in 2015.

 

[GoldenEye 007]

You would have to pay me a thousand bucks just to do something like that. And have nearby medical personnel ready.

Thousands? HAH! At LEAST a million+. Could lose my hand in all of that. If so, then at least 5-10million easy.

 

[CornBurrito]

Swarms are scary shit. I accidentally disturbed a hive in my backyard when I was a kid. The bees swarmed me and my brother. They chases us into the house and stung the shit out of us.

There were even bees in our underwear @_@

Africanized honeybees will apparently even chase you into water. If you jump into a lake they will just hover right above the surface and wait until you have to resurface for air.

 

[Ignis Fatuus]

No, bees can and do bite as well as sting. Both ends also have venom. Africanized honey bees have a 20-30x faster response time to intruders than normal honey bees. They also sting 10x faster and at 10x the frequency of regular honey bees. The hives are usually larger too, upwards of 100,000+. I honesty expect the hornets to retreat. Then again, maybe their armor would hold up, I dunno.

Bee mouth:

Hornet mouth:

That article is talking about mandibular secretions. It's not a bite in the way you're thinking. Also if 6 hornets can take down a hive of 10,000 then I don't think multiplying the number of bees is going to make a huge difference.

 

[MIMIC]

Africanized honeybees will apparently even chase you into water. If you jump into a lake they will just hover right above the surface and wait until you have to resurface for air.

lol

"Killer trolls" is what they should be called.

 

[Slayer-33]

Hornets look fucking evil

 

[Surge]

I was once stung 8 times by hornets and that hurt like hell.

But 40,000 bees...jesus fuck

 

[Alucrid]

Africanized honeybees will apparently even chase you into water. If you jump into a lake they will just hover right above the surface and wait until you have to resurface for air.

will they fly down my comically timed reeds?

 

[endresults]

yes

Jesus, they're so big and juicy looking, like a jumbo shrimp.

Spoiler

How do they taste?

 

[luxarific]

*waits for comment from gaffer whose beekeeper wife is allergic to bees*

 

[DoomGyver]

holy mother of god

these must have mutated the same way godzilla did....right?

Cannot unsee face on top of its head.

 

[Ignis Fatuus]

Jesus, they're so big and juicy looking, like a jumbo shrimp.

Spoiler

How do they taste?

In the mountain regions of Japan some subcultures do eat insects and apparently they are a delicacy when fried.

Another fun fact, the Japanese giant hornet is the deadliest animal in Japan with a kill count of 40 people a year.

 

[Nikodemos]

Cannot unsee face on top of its head.

The three ocelli? They're basically the hornet's GPS nav.

 

[Alucrid]

fuck man, i've learned so much about bees and hornets today

 

[MidgarBlowedUp]

Bee mouth:

Hornet mouth:

That article is talking about mandibular secretions. It's not a bite in the way you're thinking. Also if 6 hornets can take down a hive of 10,000 then I don't think multiplying the number of bees is going to make a huge difference.

So, too small to break skin would mean the honey bee can't possibly bite another bee much less a hornet? I get your point, didn't realize the mouths were that small. gotcha.

And I understand your reasoning, but I'm still not convinced that in reality the japanese hornets would take on a nest of africanized honey bees. I think by the time one africanized be came within a hundred yards of the hive it would be swarmed and relentlessly attacked. Which may be for nothing if the armor holds up. Africanized honey bees, when under stress, will also leave all at once as a swarm. So, even if the scout hornet found the nest the honey bees might leave before the other hornets arrived.

Either way I'd like to watch the battle/massacre.

 

[ghostmind]

Cannot unsee face on top of its head.

 

[Alucrid]

So, too small to break skin would mean the honey bee can't possibly bite another bee much less a hornet? I get your point, didn't realize the mouths were that small. gotcha.

And I understand your reasoning, but I'm still not convinced that in reality the japanese hornets would take on a nest of africanized honey bees. I think by the time one africanized be came within a hundred yards of the hive it would be swarmed and relentlessly attacked. Which may be for nothing if the armor holds up. Africanized honey bees, when under stress, will also leave all at once as a swarm. So, even if the scout hornet found the nest the honey bees might leave before the other hornets arrived.

Either way I'd like to watch the battle.

Well I mean wikipedia says that stingers are ineffective due to the hornets being 6 times the size and the armor. I don't think there's a large difference between the physiology of the two types of bees, just their temperament. Even though many more bees respond in a much faster time I still don't think they'd be able to do much damage, otherwise Japanese honey bee's vibrating ball of death would never have come about.

 

[R-User!]

New Avatar Get!

 

[Alligatorjandro]

If I was a flowing growing wild and free I'd want you to be my sweet honeybee

 

[CornBurrito]

will they fly down my comically timed reeds?

I dunno. And I don't want to find out.

 

[Mr_Appleby]

Cannot unsee face on top of its head.

fuck

 

[DedValve]

I got stung by a bee once. Wasn't that scary.

Spoiler

I'm stuck in my bathroom because theres a bee guarding my front room door

 

[fierrotlepou]

What a fucking horrible way to die. Rip, old man.

 

[Savitar]

Reminds me of the movie I watched two decades ago which I'm fairly sure was called Killer Bee's or whatnot. Bet you can't guess the premise. It had a sequel I think too. All I remember is one woman drove a car into a stadium using her horn to make them swarm her to save others.

 

[Omiee]

you guys really have to watch this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BHEkjBDWKs

 

[wetflame]

Did someone change the thread title to an arrested development joke or has it always been like that? A man died, why make a joke out of it? Jesus.

 

[PS3GamerKyle]

"You can't believe how bad they are. They make me want to get out of this business," Miller told the Tribune-Herald in a separate interview.

Very ominous.