bev - email - url
An excellent account and super photo of that wasp carrying the little mud ball! I was wondering where she was building her nests and suspected it might be indoors. I don’t quite know what I would do if it were in my house. I’d be rather tempted to leave the nest alone so that I could observe the wasp’s behaviour. After reading the Hilton Pond account of their dissection of a nest cluster, it doesn’t seem like these wasp’s are particularly prolific - or, at least, the success rate isn’t fantastic, so you probably don’t have to be concerned about being overrun with wasps later on. Of course, don’t pay much attention to my opinion on the matter as I’m the person who had caterpillars wandering all over the living room and constructing their chrysalises on the undersides of tables and cabinets and even on a wood carving last summer. (-:
Friday: 1 June 2007 @ 07:36:34
Mark Paris - email
Wayne, completely unrelated, but I saw an article in I think yesterday’s Atlanta Journal-Constitution that indicated that the Savannah River lab you have talked about would not be closed at least for a short time. Congress wants to investigate why it’s being closed. Have you heard anything more?
Regarding yesterday’s post, the local paper said without more rain in May, which we obviously did not get, it would be the driest May on record.
Friday: 1 June 2007 @ 09:27:40
Wayne - email - url
Bev - I was thinking of you and your caterpillar farm last year! I suspect I am going to argue that we keep the nest and watch what happens. She’s doubled the length of it to a total of 7 inches today so far. I also want to see if a male is going to hang around chasing us away.
Mark - Wednesday’s Aiken Standard didn’t have anything new to report, nor yesterday’s, other than to repeat that congressional reps and senators are still working to continue funding (and that includes our and SC’s four republican senators, a pleasant surprise).
SaveSREL also didn’t have much new - they do have the May 29 letter from Miller (Chair, Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight) and Rep Lampson (Chair, Subcommittee on Energy and Development). That letter was in response to DOE Sec Bodman’s declaration on May 23 that the issue was now closed.
Then there is today’s Savannah Morning News that suggests you may be right - apparently a 30 day reprieve. That would be good news!
As for your weather - a couple of days the “scientific forecaster discussion” on Weather Underground listed cities around the state and their totals for May - indeed Rome and Macon were listed with historical lows at a tenth or less an inch of rain in May. We got luckier, with 1.56 inches, due to a couple of days of small storms that went through the area.
It does look like something interesting may be happening though - the month-long high pressure mass that has been hanging over us has now moved off the coast and we may finally be getting a plume of moisture coming up from the Gulf. At the same time, with the high pressure mass moving away, the smoke from South Georgia is going to find it much easier to make its way up here!
Friday: 1 June 2007 @ 13:28:07
Mark - email
The Atlanta TV stations are forcasting that a tropical storm will cross northern Florida/southern Ga bringing rain to those areas. It won’t help us up here, but FC ought to appreciate it. Maybe it will help control those fires and lessen the smoke we get.
Friday: 1 June 2007 @ 19:01:41
jason - email - url
The pictures are fantastic. Great detail! I wish I knew more about them and could help. I know several nested in my garage year after year, so I do know a successful nest site is remembered and utilized more than once. By the same queen or the offspring, or both? I haven’t a clue.
A large number of mud wasps nest under the front steps at our family farm in East Texas. They’re not hostile or aggressive, so we leave them be. Even though they’ve been there for years, there never is a swarm of them–and that, I think, verifies what Bev said about their nesting success rate. But I do know they’ll remember where they nested and will return as often as they can to do it again.
Friday: 1 June 2007 @ 19:05:54
Wayne - email - url
Mark - yes, it looks like there was quite a lot of development during the night. I don’t think we’re going to see much of it here, either. Maybe a few drops.
Jason - she was hard at work all yesterday, and must be starting to spider hunt. Sitting on the front step reading, she was continually buzzing and investigating me.
No, they’re not at all aggressive in the manner of paper wasps.
Saturday: 2 June 2007 @ 04:32:38
FC - email - url
Here’s a thought from a happy rain soaked FC.
With the roundish (non organpipe) muddauber nests here, I find I can “pop” it off the siding with a little sideways pressure. It usually comes away intact.
A flat surface like a putty knife might takes them off with no major structural damage ... most of the time.
Could the same thing be attempted with your organ pipe nest? If it came off intact, you could park it on some outer rafter or other protected spot and see if her babies make it.
If you have the new antigravity Roomba, that kitchen nest is doomed.
Saturday: 2 June 2007 @ 10:51:40
Wayne - email - url
Great idea, FC. I’m not certain if she carpetted the pipe on the wood surface but it’s worth a try.
Yesterday’s festivities meant we had shut the door most of the day, so we interrupted her efforts. I’ll be interested to see if her tiny brain reprogrammed itself for a fresh start or if she continues with the job today.
And yes, the rain was absolutely great. I’m afraid northwest Georgia probably got little if any of it though.
Sunday: 3 June 2007 @ 03:45:13
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