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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To be appalled by the ignorance of my colleague?

142 replies

Moulesfrites · 03/07/2011 20:10

My work colleague was telling me today that she had found a bees' nest in her garden - instead of calling the council etc, she and her fiance decided to pour water on it with a hosepipe, knock it down and stamp on it to break it up and kill the bees Sad

AIBU to be absolutely horrified by this?? I was trying to explain to her how important bees are but she really didn't understand that she had done anything wrong - she claimed that she was protecting herself and her neighbours from being stung Hmm

is it even worth trying to convince someone so stupid of the errors of her ways??

OP posts:
GreenEyesandHam · 03/07/2011 22:27

I've never been stung by owt. I do sometimes wonder if I'm one of those who are hyper allergic and just don't know it.

catinthehat2 · 03/07/2011 22:31

HORNETS are the beesknees though.

I don't think I could cope with being stung on the arse by one of those feckers. I've only started to see them in recent years though. Huge scary things. Where do they live - holes in the ground?

CQrrrneee · 03/07/2011 22:31

I have never seen a hornet and never want to I think they live in nuclear bunkers

soymama · 03/07/2011 22:37

YADNBU. Thanks for highlighting the subject. I have learnt a lot from this thread

Grin
catinthehat2 · 03/07/2011 22:38

Cripes

fastweb · 03/07/2011 22:38

Where do they live - holes in the ground?

My chimney.

Their sting didn't seem worse than a wasp's sting to me. But then I am very wet and act like I've been mortally wounded with any sting (bar mosquitoes, I just whinge mightily about them) so maybe my comparision is off thank to hysteronics clouding my judgement.

WillieWaggledagger · 03/07/2011 22:45

i have seen hornets in a log in a wood in France

so catinthehat and CQ, i would avoid chimneys and logs in woods in France

ThatVikRinA22 · 03/07/2011 22:50

all you have to do if you have bees is call a bee keeper, the council will give you their number. it takes 2 phone calls if that.

i had a next of bumble bees. they number only about 200, and will leave you well alone if you leave them alone - and they vacate the next early sept/late summer anyway.

honey bees number in their thousands, but a bee keeper will gladly come out and take them off your hands.

YANBU op. stupid, horrible, ignorant nasty piece of work id say your colleague is.

Nanny0gg · 03/07/2011 22:51

Had a queen hornet in my kitchen once...

Never been so scared in my life.

fastweb · 03/07/2011 22:53

chimneys and logs in woods in France

And Italy.

kitbit · 03/07/2011 22:56

Bumble bees sting you if you accidentally step on them

Seriously though, not knowing about bees is one thing, but you'd have to be a special kind of dim to spray water on then stamp on a thousand easily upset sharp-ended insects, wouldn't you???

razzlebathbone · 03/07/2011 22:57

Jesus! Catinthehat that picture has frightened me to death!

ThatVikRinA22 · 03/07/2011 22:58

im afraid that special kind of dim is on the increase kitbit.

petisa · 03/07/2011 23:08

We have loads of bees in our garden - there's a plant with little red berries that they adore. They totally ignore us, far too busy!

boolifooli · 03/07/2011 23:12

Wasps, inc hornets, are as important for the ecosystem. The wasp family feed on all the bugs that eat plants. No wasps would mean no plants. The last 2 years have seen the odd hornet coming to drink water from the planter near my outside tap. They are big bastads but are more docile than their cousins.

LolaRennt · 04/07/2011 02:46

YANBU! She clearly wasn't that terrified Hmm when scared shitless of a load of wasps I wouldn't attack them. The uk is desperate for bees at the moment

fuzzpig · 04/07/2011 07:01

YANBU.

AlpinePony · 04/07/2011 07:05

We had to get rid of a small hive last month. Only a couple of dozen.

If I'd been on my own I'd have ignored it, but not prepared to do that 4' from the back door at 9" high with a toddler on the rampage.

AlpinePony · 04/07/2011 07:06

PS the fine for killing a hornet in Europe is 50000 euros.

pixielovescake · 04/07/2011 07:52

A hornet came down my chimney once. I near enough peed myself. Shudder.

pixielovescake · 04/07/2011 07:53

Ohvand yes we need bees. I hate them but still wouldnt have done that !

HelloKlitty · 04/07/2011 07:53

Bees are endangered! All of you ignorant people going on about how scary they are...you are fools! They are protected and an important part of our eco system.....there are experts who would have come straight away to help her.

ggirl · 04/07/2011 08:02

There should be a heavy fine for destroying a bee hive.

feckwit · 04/07/2011 08:05

Ridiculous. My friend almost died when he was strimming his hedge and strimmed through a bees nest that he had not noticed. He was stung about 50 times and the paramedics said he was lucky to have not had a heart attack. What she did was irresponsible.

SpannerPants · 04/07/2011 08:13

I don't understand how people can be so ignorant!

We have tawny mining bees nesting in our lawn and we spend hours watching them go in and out - they're fascinating!