More Unusual Insects: Bee Fly

Pinball1970 said:
Ok noted, I've never been out with a Melissa either. There is another one, Apis...? One Latin one Greek I think.
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Apis mellifera? That’s the honey bee. And all Latin, mellifera meaning honey-bearing.

From which the Italian for bee is “ape”, pronounced ah-pay. There is or was a 3 wheeled motor tricycle in Italy called the ape, used by tradesmen for carrying goods around the narrow streets of villages. It is the big brother of the vespa scooter. Vespa means wasp.

My brother and I once annoyed the owner of an ape by photographing him next to the vehicle on which the name was prominently displayed. The guy had long hairy arms and we thought it rather a joke, but he was not amused. This was 1981. We were young.
 
Sarkus said:
Caused by an ex-girlfriend?? ;)
Melissophobia is the fear of bees. :)

As for your dead bees, there's been some changes in weather, heavy rains, etc. That tends to kill off a few bees. Plus the workers only live 6-8 weeks, so if they came alive start of May, they'd be dropping like... um... flies? around now. Or maybe there's just a nest nearby?
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Funny that melissaphobia is the wrong spelling and that melissophobia is correct even though melissa ends with an "a" ,being feminine .
(eg agoraphobia)

Melissa,daughter of Melisseus ,King of Crete being the name of a nymph who fed the infant Zeus honey when he was being shielded from his father Chronos.
 
geordief said:
Funny that melissaphobia is the wrong spelling and that melissophobia is correct even though melissa ends with an "a" ,being feminine .
(eg agoraphobia)

Melissa,daughter of Melisseus ,King of Crete being the name of a nymph who fed the infant Zeus honey when he was being shielded from his father Chronos.
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Oh that’s interesting. I didn’t know that melissa is ancient Greek for honeybee. So that’s what Pinball1970 was thinking of when said both Latin and Greek were involved.

And then there was Arachne, who wove a flawless tapestry challenging the supremacy of Athena - and was changed into a spider. Perhaps Pinball1970 has arachnophobia as well?
 
The formal name of diabetes, which is diabetes mellitus, also comes from honey. Diabetes comes from the ancient Gk word meaning "to pass through" or "siphon."
So literally the two words mean "to piss sweetness."
 
candy said:
Does anyone know about the screw worms that are in the news?
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Yah, I first heard in autumn of last year that it was threatening to encroach on the US. But I don't have any insightful revelations to add to the latest general buzz.

2026 United States New World Screwworm outbreak
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_United_States_New_World_Screwworm_outbreak

New World Screwworm
https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/new-world-screwworm

Cochliomyia hominivorax
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cochliomyia_hominivorax

How Trump screwed up on screwworms
_
 
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exchemist said:
Oh that’s interesting. I didn’t know that melissa is ancient Greek for honeybee. So that’s what Pinball1970 was thinking of when said both Latin and Greek were involved.

And then there was Arachne, who wove a flawless tapestry challenging the supremacy of Athena - and was changed into a spider. Perhaps Pinball1970 has arachnophobia as well?
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Lots of bees so far.
 
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I have finally discovered why I can’t keep cheese in my cellar
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This a drain moth fly. About 2mm long so very small, flies nocturnally and lives in drains. There is a pit outside my back door with a metal grating over it. In the base of the pit is a wire mesh dome, covering a vent to the main drain from the house. There is also a small air brick connecting this pit to the coolest part of the cellar, where my wine racks are. This has slate shelves, which look original, so I imagine this area was used for similar purposes when the house was built. Presumably that is why it has the air brick.

I have been mystified by how it is that if I put a smelly French cheese down in the cellar to keep it cool, occasionally a little fly will fly out when I open the cheese, in spite of the mesh anti-insect dome I put over it. We have had cases of larvae in the cheese. It always seems to be the smelly soft cheeses like Camembert, Livarot or Pont l’Eveque.

Today I found one in the kitchen, next to a box containing a rather ripe Pont l’Eveque, took a photo and looked it up on the internet. So now I know. These little buggers are happy in the dark and so tiny they can get through the mesh. And they come from my drain, which is not very hygienic!

Now I need to think whether I need that air brick or should block it up….
Also, why does the main drain need a vent?……
 
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TheVat said:
prevents gurgles?
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Very scientific! :)

As this is outside the house, under the concrete path along the side, I doubt it is to do with noisy pipes. But it is quite a long run. Maybe there is, or was, some rule about venting every so many metres, or feet, or something. Suppose I could ask the man from Drainscan who did an endoscopic survey of the drain about 10 years ago.
 
Pinball1970 said:
Your house attracts some hideous combo arthropods it has to be said. I will await the dustbin lid wasp beetle next, or the septic tank spider fly.
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Well fair's fair, we do also have this:

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The Jersey Tiger Moth. Aptly named and shows a flash of orange when it flies, from its underwings. About 1-1.5 in long, with the shape of a Vulcan bomber. Larvae live on nettles and brambles so not a problem in the garden. Used to be found only along the SW coast (and the Channel Isles and Normandy presumably) but now encroaching into S London. I've seen one in the garden on several occasions, for the last 3 years running, in summertime.

The stripy legs show a pleasing attention to detail on the part of the Creator. :)
 
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exchemist said:
Well fair's fair, we do also have this:

View attachment 7718
The Jersey Tiger Moth. Aptly named and shows a flash of orange when it flies, from its underwings. About 1-1.5 in long, with the shape of a Vulcan bomber. Larvae live on nettles and brambles so not a problem in the garden. Used to be found only along the SW coast (and the Channel Isles and Normandy presumably) but now encroaching into S London. I've seen one in the garden on several occasions, for the last 3 years running, in summertime.

The stripy legs show a pleasing attention to detail on the part of the Creator. :)
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Im ok with that, it is almost a butterfly.
 
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