I found this in my washing machine underneath my clean clothes as I was flipping them to the dryer. I have no idea where he came from. I used an old dryer sheet to remove him. Decided to take him upstairs and take a pic because why not? It's weird. I placed him on the table and then realized he was still moving!
https://imgur.com/gallery/KW6Qw51
That somewhat looks like, what we call in Louisiana, a deer fly. The ones here come out at night and do have a nasty bite. I see them mostly around swamps.
shareHere we call it a bee, but whatever. It was just such a surprise, but as I said, the bigger surprise was that it was still alive after presumably going through the laundry cycle.
shareMaybe it is a bee. π
shareThe black and yellow stripes say "bee" to me, but I'm no entomologist.
shareWhatever you do, donβt keep him for a pet!
shareNo worries there, mate.
shareI think it's a wasp and not a bee, and you'll be sorry for letting it live!
But again, I'm no entomologist.
I didn't let it live. I just hope it's the only one in the house. I can't figure where it came from, and how the heck did he end up in the washing machine?? Β―\_(γ)_/Β―
A couple of years ago I found a bumblebee in my basement. I walked down there and it whizzed right by my head. As I recall, I grabbed some bug spray and dispatched him when he landed on a windowsill. But this was before I got new windows installed and a few cracks around them were sealed.
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S O Bee! Excellent! π€£
But no, I will not adopt him.
It's wonderful to be alive
To be a bee in this beehive
It's tough as nails, it's smooth as silk
It's milk and honey, without milk
I work with flowers, it's my work
From this, there's no way that I can shirk
No-no-no-no-no, there is no complex philosophy
It's just because I'm a bee
Unlike the skunk, I do not smell
But I have a thing and it stings like hell
As heroes go, I'm unsung
But step on me and you'll get stung
You'll get stung
The cutest bee I've ever seen
Is our own big, fat sexy queen
It's true she hasn't got such great legs
But you should see the girl lay eggs
It's wonderful to be a bee
Although there are billions just like me
This hive of mine, I call it home
There is no place like comb sweet comb
Nice! π
shareI fed the image into the iNaturalist app and it came back paper wasp. It couldnβt narrow down the exact species of paper wasp. I ruled out Asian Paper Wasp and Mexican honey bee.
shareInteresting. Does it make a difference that I'm in Minnesota?
shareIf you upload your pic to the database, someone will ID it. Itβs actually kind of fun, and youβre participating in citizen science.
https://www.inaturalist.org/
Looks like a yellowjacket (type of hornet.) With the cold weather, they are try to find a warm place. We have one in the wall here and I kid you not, was finding upwards of a dozen a day inside. Once the freeze comes and they all die, I'm going to caulk to entrance.
Yikes! My experience with yellow jackets dates back to when I was about five years old. I wandered over to a neighbor's house. He was in his front yard, running a hose into what I soon learned was a nest of the buggers. I ended up getting stung five times, even though he tried to warn me away. Those buggers got underneath my shirt. Yes, I ran away screaming.
shareyeah, they're usually aggressive little bastards, but with the cold weather and lack of food, they are very lethargic and easy to kill with a fly swatter.
shareWell, I grabbed a nearby Christmas light box to dispatch the bugger. It really freaked me out that it was still alive. How is that possible??
share
Looks like a wasp.
π