Hi Steve, Yes, I have seen that, except those yellow jacket "bees" are really wasps, which are predators. They catch other insects on the wing, paralyze them and feed them to the larvae, or, just eat them. I was at the inectory at the Agri-Agrifood Canada in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada some years ago. I watched a praying mantis catch and eat a fly. It first bit off the head, kept it in one arm, then ate the rest of the body, before consuming the head. I guess it kept the best for the last! Bees tend to prefer nectar and pollen to meat. There are other beneficial insects that parisitize filth flies. You can buy them commerically. Michael ----- Original Message ----- From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Tuesday, September 17, 2002 5:45 PM Subject: farm journal
> The other day after I fed the cows I stood and watched them eat. As I was > looking a yellow jack bee landed on the top wire right in front of me, it was > holding a fly. In front of my eyes I watched the bee bite off the flies > wings and legs, then eat the head, with the appendages dispatched and the > head gone the bee flew off. All summer I saw the yellow jackets hovering > around the cows feet where the flies like to chew. The flies would get > caught up in the long hairs of the Scottish Highlander cows and become bee > food. This is a very beneficial relationship. Has anyone else seen this > phenomenon???...sstorch > > >
