Japanese wasps, and other really really horrible insects

[Revenant]

Here's a list of some insects you might not ever wanna meet.... plus detailed desciptions. Didn't know I was living near these wasps, and they're just incredibly scary things!

The 5 Most Horrifying Bugs in the World

So talk about insects here in Japan, or just horrible insects in general.

I didn't quite know where to place this thread, so here it goes unless a mod moves it. Found this list at another forum.

 

[Goldiegirl]

I am known as the crazy foreigner because of a Japanese wasp. I was outside near my in-laws garden and this giant bug is buzzing around. It lands on my husbands head and i freak out because I don't want to see him stung. So I swat at it and then it goes for me and I start running around screaming and flailing my arms and then just for added insult we get a small tremor. I started to cry. Now they think I was crying because of the small earthquake, I tried to explain that a giant bee/wasp/hornet was attacking me. My husband still laughs over that incident.

 

[Mars Man]

Yeah, I have come across them bugs here. . . but trust me. . . very, very seldom. Just the regular ole hornets, wasps, and bumble bees are the most common. We have (or at least I do) more trouble with the dadgone spiders. They like to put up sticky, stringy lines in places where I want to walk. They put them up just before night fall, in the summer months, and I swear...I can walk around the corner of the house one afternoon, then go by the same path some 10 to 15 minutes later...and get my face sticky.

Outside the window up stairs...where there's usually a light on, those big six leggers build really nice to study webs. You can sit there and watch them roll the bugs they've caught...just like in the Lord of the Rings movie. They don't bother me, but they just kind of make a mess...that's all.

That sounds so cute, Goldiegirl !! I'd have loved to see that one. Was it really a wasp? I bet it was a different insect. . .

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

I don't mind bee's, in fact i really like the furry cute British varieties of bumblebee's, but i have to say i really don't like wasps or hornets- while a bee will only attack you if you threaten or hurt it, wasps are a lot more aggressive and short tempered and can sting multiple times (while a bee can only sting once and then dies afterwards).
I do try to avoid killing insects when i can, like when a bee gets lost in my house i open a window for it to let it out, but when its a hornet or a wasp i tend to kill them if its not safe to open a window for them.

Almost a year ago i had a really scary experience in my garden. There were a load of massive honeysuckle plants that were overtaking a part of the garden so i decided to cut them back a bit. While i was cutting them back, i noticed there was this big weed climbing over the honeysuckle plants so i started pulling it out. All of a sudden i heard a big angry load buzz right past my ear as a wasp suddenly flew out of the honeysuckle. I immediately knew something was wrong so i retreated back for a few minutes before cautiously coming back to inspect the honeysuckle- to my shock i had almost just pulled out a small wasp nest right on top of me attached to the weed!
The whole experience completely freaked me out. Later we got a pest exterminator to poison the wasp nest, unfortunately the the chemicals did kill off a large part of the honeysuckle but on the bright side the wasp nest and its wasps did get killed . From this experience i have learnt to always be especially extra careful when trimming back or cutting down hedges/trees/bushes/plants etc in the garden.

 

[Goldiegirl]

I mowed over a ground bee nest. Got stung all over my legs, so Tokis I understand where your coming from! I didn't know some bees live in the ground.

 

[Iron Chef]

Certain types of insects I swear seem to be bigger over here than say your average variety back home. Giant Cicadas for instance like this one:



The one above was taken in Thailand apparently but you get the picture. I seen me some big@ss cockroaches too during my time here. In a poorly lit room looked like a hockey puck scurrying across the floor headin' for the goal...

 

[Goldiegirl]

Bugs scare me more than earthquakes! Iron Chef that bug was way too big and scary. Big grasshoppers are freaky too. The scariest, of all insects to me is the praying mantis!

 

[Tsuyoiko]

The World Museum in Liverpool has an insectary for any Brits who want to experience the world's creepy insects without travelling too far. Highly recommended

World Museum

 

[Haruspex]

I passionately detest insects, I usually kill something that can sting or bite me, land on my food, dirty any of my belongings. Usually I kill them before they could do anything like that when in my room, obviously I can't kill a flying bug outside in the open.

 

[Iron Chef]

Nice link Tsuyoiko. That museum looks awesome.

"We all unintentionally swallow at least half a kilogram of insects in our lives."

I wonder how they came up with that number... such a pleasant thought.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

"We all unintentionally swallow at least half a kilogram of insects in our lives."
I wonder how they came up with that number... such a pleasant thought.

I doubt such a fact could be true- how on earth would they gather such data? Its probably a myth .

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

I mowed over a ground bee nest. Got stung all over my legs, so Tokis I understand where your coming from! I didn't know some bees live in the ground.

Yep they sure can- there are certain varieties of bee's that make their nests in old abandoned mouse holes, and sometimes this ends up with the bee's choosing a old mouse hole thats in the middle of a lawn.

But there are also certain wasps that do this too- on my mums farm, every year we used to get dozens of wasp nests around the farm. My brother particularly despises the wasps and he activity seeks out the ground nests to destroy them. Whenever he found a ground wasp nest, he would get a hose pipe and a can of petrol- he would then at a distance carefully insert one end of the hose pipe in the wasps nest, and then start filling the nest up with petrol at the other end of the pipe.
When the nest was pretty saturated with petrol, he'd then light a match and chuck it at the petrol saturated wasp nest- now of course you've then got all of this combusting petrol in the wasp nest and it would often explode with flames- the wasps were really stupid though, they'd be like "Oh no, the flames are attacking our nest- lets attack the flames!" and you would see lots of wasps flying into the fire and getting sizzled to a crisp lol.

I know it sounds like pretty crazy stuff, but it was a job that had to be done and was a more environmentally friendly way of destroying the wasps and their nest than exterminating them with toxic chemicals- plus it was a relatively entertaining way to fill out some of the long summer days on the farm. I don't particularly have any sympathy for wasps- last time my bro burnt a nest, it was an active wasp nest he discovered under a cattle water trough on the farm- it was the middle of summer at the time but the poor cows wouldn't drink because every time they went near the water trough the wasps stung them. So it was pretty good when my brother got rid of that wasp nest using the old petrol and hose method, the cows were a lot happier afterwards and they all went for a drink at the trough once the nest had been destroyed and had cooled off .

 

[justin]

Great gaint wasps. . . Say there's gaint spiders and I'll never set foot in Japan. Bad enough I have wasps and spiders trying to eat me here. Evil things!

 

[Flashjeff]

Bugs!! COOL!! I love bugs!! I remember watching a documentary show on National Geographic Channel a few weeks ago about the world's deadliest insects, and Japan's giant wasps were mentioned. Those things were straight out of central casting for a 1950's "big bug" movie, only these bad boys are definitely real. I watched footage on that show of the wasps decimating a bee hive, killing thousands of drones with ease and found it absolutely enthralling. Needless to say, I wouldn't want to run into those little monsters unless they were behind glass. Thanks for the links, Revenant. I found it absolutely fascinating!

 

[den4]

them giant hornets from hell are truly horrible insects....interesting to note that the native Japanese honeybees know how to kill them hornets, however...where immigrant honeybees are utterly decimated by the hornets....natural selection at work.....

 

[Jericho Desu]

That is some freaky stuff, awesome though. Are those Japanese hornets all around Japan or are some more found in specific prefectures then others?
I need to know what places to avoid...

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

That is some freaky stuff, awesome though. Are those Japanese hornets all around Japan or are some more found in specific prefectures then others?
I need to know what places to avoid...

I think they're actually pretty uncommon/rare overall, i think they tend to prefer to live in woodlands up in the mountains and stuff- either way if you accidentally come across a nest, they'll send out warning signals before they attack so you have a chance to get away .

 

[Flashjeff]

I think they're actually pretty uncommon/rare overall, i think they tend to prefer to live in woodlands up in the mountains and stuff- either way if you accidentally come across a nest, they'll send out warning signals before they attack so you have a chance to get away .

Like I said, I'd love to see those monster wasps----behind glass of course! Mama Branch didn't raise no fool!

 

[den4]

I think they're actually pretty uncommon/rare overall, i think they tend to prefer to live in woodlands up in the mountains and stuff- either way if you accidentally come across a nest, they'll send out warning signals before they attack so you have a chance to get away .

Actually them hornets from hell are quite common throughout Japan. You can sometimes find their nests around people's houses or at temples, and they attack anything black is one characteristic. Several folks tend to die each year after an attack from those buggers....really nasty things....
I recall once getting one of them in the car, up near Aomori, northern most area of Honshu Island, and when the driver of the car knocked it out of the car with a newspaper, he proceeded to stomp on the bug, and you could hear the carapace crunching under the weight of his shoe, but even after that, the hornet was still alive, trying to get at the driver...we got out of that area quick, because them hornets release a scent when they are killed to attract more hornets to the area to attack the thing that killed their comrade...really wicked they are :O
Unfortunately, since they are flesh eaters, they attack at once without warning. Their sting apparently causes flesh and muscle to disintegrate (melt), and I hear it is very painful, causing the person to go into shock, if he/she is stung once too many times.
Best stay away from them, or wear heavy duty protective clothing :O