I’m posting this at night…just in case anybody wants to see pictures of IOUS (Insects of Unusual Size).
This…specimen was on my back door on Friday morning. He scared the snot out of me.
He was more than an inch long. Inch and a half, maybe? He also appears to have a bum leg. I wish I had thought to take a picture of him with something that could give you a sense of the size…but, frankly, I was afraid he would figure out how to eat me through the two panes of glass.
I was insanely grateful a) that he was on the opposite side of the glass and b) it was really cold outside, so I think he was just about conked out.
He was gone by noon, and we could safely open the back door. *shudder*
Any bug experts want to tell me why a (hornet??) would be THAT large?? Seriously, I’ve never seen anything like it, and I’ve lived in the Pacific Northwest for nearly 30 years!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bald-faced_hornet
ReplyDeleteWhen they say "not aggressive unless the nest is disturbed" what does that mean? Because I sure wouldn't spend much time next to that sucker!
Ewww! That said, I would've been morbidly fascinated, too --as long as there is a partition between me and the bug!
ReplyDeleteGood heavens, that's LARGE... there isn't a nuclear dump near your house, is there?
ReplyDeleteJust a thought. :D
Awww.... looky! He's smiling at you.
ReplyDeleteI don't blame you for staying on this side of the partition :)
Eww! I've never seen anything like that, either.
ReplyDelete[For some reason, though, the spiders up here this year are abnormally large. Certain small members of my family are terrified of them.]
when i was in croatia i saw hornets the size of birds... i saw maybe 6 dead ones on the ground and when i finally saw one flying through the air, i ran. i'm trying to google for a picture/name but i can't seem to find it.
ReplyDelete