BajaNomad - Bees on the Sea of Cortez

Bees on the Sea of Cortez

Ateo - 6-25-2024 at 07:50 PM

Monday morning my wife and I went out for a little kayaking out of BOLA. Dead calm. No wind. No sounds.

We were maybe a 1/4 mile from shore when I heard a buzz sound by my ear - but I ignored it. 3 seconds later I looked up and saw a swarm of bees the like I had never seen before. They started buzzing us and I have to admit - it was little scary having no place to run! In my mind, if things turned worse and they started stinging us, I was thinking of jumping off the kayak and maybe even flipping it over for shelter.

Yes, I'm a city slicker. :lol:

[Edited on 6-26-2024 by Ateo]

JZ - 6-25-2024 at 08:24 PM

I've seen it several times out on the boat. Worst ever was at anchor at Bahia San Fransquito. We had just made lunch and they were everywhere.

We came down from BoLA and were heading to San Carlos in Sonora. I was debating whether to stay the night in San Fransquito or head across the mid-drift islands to Kino Bay.

The bees made the decision very easy. :light:

oxxo - 6-25-2024 at 10:11 PM

I kept my trawler at Marina La Paz for 10 years. We spent a lot of time at the SOC islands for several days at a time. Occasionally, bees would be a problem, but not often. We would just pull anchor and move to a different spot or go inside and close things up until they went away. However, I would not want to be in a kayak when this happened! My boat was a little larger than a kayak, so we kept the kayak up on the boat deck when not in use. I still have the inflatable Hobie tandem peddle/paddle kayak. It's for sale in San Jose d C. Send me a U2U if interested.

stillnbaja - 6-25-2024 at 10:25 PM

Quote: Originally posted by JZ

I've seen it several times out on the boat. Worst ever was at anchor at Bahia San Fransquito. We had just made lunch and they were everywhere.

We came down from BoLA and were heading to San Carlos in Sonora. I was debating whether to stay the night in San Fransquito or head across the mid-drift islands to Kino Bay.

The bees made the decision very easy. :light:

what's the deal,your entourage/body guards refused to shoo away those pesky bees?

pacificobob - 6-26-2024 at 06:29 AM

Quote: Originally posted by stillnbaja

Quote: Originally posted by JZ

what's the deal,your entourage/body guards refused to shoo away those pesky bees?

,😂😂😂😂

Not bees, but a hell of a swarm

AKgringo - 6-26-2024 at 07:32 AM

Driving out toward San Juan de La Costa I drove through a fresh hatch of moths. It wasn't just my windshield that caught hell, there were enough bugs to clog a radiator!

I drove down to a long beach right off the highway, and the high-water mark was a solid line of dead bugs! This was during a big bloom after one of the late summer storm systems drenched the area.

elgatoloco - 6-26-2024 at 09:17 AM

In her previous life my wife kept bees. She insists that swarming bees are the safest bees. They are looking for a new home and not trying to protect the one they already have. Still not excited about putting it the test..........if you know what I mean. :dudette:

David K - 6-26-2024 at 09:18 AM

Have had encountered Africanized bees a few times while south of San Felipe. The unprovoked multiple stinging is annoying. Tea tree oil saved the day!

surabi - 6-26-2024 at 03:33 PM

Yes, a lot of insects hate the smell of tea tree oil. I much prefer to use it than using toxic Off and such.
Mosquitos and no seeums will also stay away from you.

Most insects that sting don't just fly or crawl around looking for people to sting, it's just their defense mechanism. Waving your arms around trying to shoo them away is the best way to get stung. If you stay calm and still, you'll not likely get stung.

I once had a scorpion plop onto my arm from the ceiling, while lying in bed reading. I stayed perfectly still and it just crawled down my arm onto the bed, and then the floor, where I whacked it with a shoe.

[Edited on 6-26-2024 by surabi]

David K - 6-26-2024 at 04:34 PM

Scorpion brutality! LOL

The tea tree oil (melaleuca alternifolia) is applied to the sting or bite of a poisonous critter and the Australian plant oil neutralizes the venom... Still stings but reduces the pain or quickens the recovery. I never go anywhere without a tube of the gel or a bottle of the oil.

We were sitting under the sun canopy when several bees went right for me and stung me about three times. Unprovoked.. but we suspect it may be because I was wearing blue swim trunks and or the sun canopy was blue. That seemed to attract them. They didn't touch Baja Angel... lucky girl!

oxxo - 6-26-2024 at 04:53 PM

Quote: Originally posted by David K

We were sitting under the sun canopy when several bees went right for me and stung me about three times. Unprovoked.. but we suspect it may be because I was wearing blue swim trunks and or the sun canopy was blue. That seemed to attract them. !

No, they stung you for poor taste in swimming attire! :lol:

surabi - 6-26-2024 at 07:00 PM

Another thing that works well for scorpion stings is the plant called sword plant or mother-in-law's tongue. It isn't a juicy plant, it's quite fibrous. But if you cut a leaf in 1 inch chunks, and pound them with a rock or something into a mash, and apply it to the sting, it lessens the pain and seems to prevent intense reactions.

I once got a bad scorpion sting by one of those small almost transparent ones, that pack a big whallop, on the base of my thumb. My thumb was totally numb for weeks, and it took 3 months before I got complete feeling back in it.

Yes, I kill scorpions and c-ckroaches. They're welcome to run around outside, but not in my house. All the other insects I leave be. I don't even mind some occasional ants in the house- they're usually just cleaning up some bit of food or a dead bug and then leave again.

[Edited on 6-27-2024 by surabi]

Tioloco - 6-27-2024 at 09:23 AM

Dealt with plenty of bee swarms thru the years but the worst was at San Francisquito. Had a nice campsite and was visited by a swarm that was thirsty for water in the morning. Most persistent swarm I have seen. Had to throw everything back in the truck and hit the road with some pep in my step. Was able to stop and pack things up after about a mile or so. Luckily no stings.

BajaBlanca - 6-27-2024 at 12:28 PM

Our neighbor in La Bocana said he once had to dig himself into the sand because of a swarm.

Bees on the Sea

Yellowtail_Fever - 6-27-2024 at 05:22 PM

I have seen bees on the east side of San Marcos Island. They were not hostile but we didn't hang around.

RFClark - 6-28-2024 at 06:34 AM

This has been the worst year in the last 30 for bees south of San Felipe. Colonies have been dividing and looking for new locations. The house we sold had 3 colonies move in that needed to be removed. These are bees with attitude as well as David noted.

South Campos have had large flower blooms these last few years as a result of climate change. (It has rained far more than average) So for the trees, flowers and bees a good thing.

Flatfish - 7-16-2024 at 09:31 AM

Came across a swarm just south of Playa Cocos at La Virgen del Camino. Fun to watch….

IMG_5841.jpeg - 102kB

Ateo - 7-16-2024 at 02:20 PM

Wow. Beautiful shot. Thanks.