As I arrived home from a Matinee Concert, I notice a swarm of bees around the head of the Raptor! After securing the car I walked over to Raphael the Raptor with caution. The bees were not just flying around his head. To my dismay they were inside his mouth and crawling behind the metal panels leading down Raphael’s neck and into his belly! I carefully moved behind him to listen to his belly. And Yes, they were inside buzzing away. A beehive in Raphael would just not do. I know Raphael would not have provoked the bees, because he does even like honey! Therefore, this attack was all the bees doing. I was so startled by the situation I didn’t think to take pictures during the event. However with the close-ups below, I think you can image what the addition of many bees would look like!
Now what to do? I don’t want to kill the bees. They are too important for the environment. I just want them to take up residence in a more bee appropriate home. I Googled “bee repellant” and found some suitable recipes online. Although they involved water and spraying inside my Dinosaur. In addition, they would leave a sticky residue. With all the rust preventative measures that I have taken with my metal dinosaurs, that was not the direction I really wanted to go. I called a local beekeeper for advice. He was very surprised the bees were interested in taking up residence in a metal dinosaur! The beekeeper indicated bees prefer wood and may even try plastic. Lucky for me, I have “new age” bees. He offered a repellant that was $100.00 a bottle (no thank you, I’ll use the free online recipe) or smoking them out for $150.00! Unfortunately, the smoking out did not guarantee a no return of the bees. So, this would not do either. Fortunately, the next morning there were only one or two bees buzzing Raphael’s head and I could not hear any inside his belly. So, I grabbed a couple of sheets of cloth that I use to protect some sensitive trees from frost, waved away the few remaining bees and quickly covered Raphael. I carefully secured the cloth using the weight of Raphael’s base frame and blue tape. I left the cloth in place for a couple of days to ensure the bees would settle elsewhere.
The bees didn’t come back. This was a relief since the “Picnic with Dinosaurs” event was just a few days away (see last week’s post 7/21/2017). I was sure my guests would want selfies with the Raptor. A swarm of bees were probably not preferred company! I have had most of my Dinosaurs for over two years and bees have never been an issue. Let’s hope it stays that way. At least I know of some solutions should they come buzzing to close to my dinosaurs in the future.
Don’t forget August 9th from 3 – 4:00 pm Kevin, the T-Rex hatchling and I will be at the E.P. Foster Library for their “STAR” program. Story Time And Reading. We will share some Dinosaur Tales and there will be photo opportunities with Kevin!
E.P. Foster Library
651 East Main Street
Ventura, CA 93001
805 648-2716
“Dedicated to Saving Metal Dinosaurs”
Paul & Prehistoric Pals
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