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Book Nook provides readers with insights into the world of books. Vick Mickunas takes you into the center of the publishing world with the latest book buzz, book reviews, and exclusive chats with authors..Home > Blogs > Book Nook > Archives > 2010 > September > 12 > Entry
From good bugs to bedbugs…
I have been thinking about bugs a lot. Or insects. Take your pick. There’s been all this media coverage recently about the scourge of bedbugs. I have never run across a bedbug that I know of-have you?
And I have been reading a charming little book about bugs; Insectopedia by Hugh Raffles. This collection of quirky essays takes readers through an alphabetical collection of musings about bugs (OK, insects).
There are bugs that I dislike: mosquitoes, cockroaches, stinging flies. But there are also a few insects that give me pleasure. In fact I have been having some encounters recently with some of these these good bugs.
My neighbor is a beekeeper. He keeps hives just a few yards across the way from me. It has been so dry lately that his bees have become regular visitors to the water dish that I keep outside for the cats.
I watch as dozens of bees come to drink each day. They fly away seemingly refreshed. The water dish attracts nocturnal visitors. Raccoons. They are thirsty too. They have been getting a bit rambunctious out there of an evening. They keep turning the water dish upside down.
So I refill the dish each morning. I usually put the dish back at exactly the same spot. The other day, I didn’t. The raccoons had turned it over the previous night, Without thinking I placed the dish about five feet over from the usual location. Then I noticed all the honeybees. They were milling about over where the dish was usually located. None of them were drinking at the new location. They knew where the dish was supposed to be. So I moved it back for them. Smart bees-or dumb? Good bugs? I think so.
The butterflies are thirsty too. The other day I was reading my newspaper outside. I had a bottle of water on the table. A gorgeous butterfly landed on top of the bottle and began to drink from some of the water drops. She consumed every drop. I wanted to give her some more. I very carefully unscrewed the lid on the bottle with the butterfly still perched on it. She seemed to understand my intent. I poured out a big globule of water for her. And she drank it. Then she flew over and landed right on my face, on my right cheek. She sat there rather contentedly it seemed for about 10 minutes as I read my paper. Then she fluttered away. Beautiful.
Today I was riding my bike along a country lane. Gorgeous stretch of road. Corn on one side. Beans on the other. A spectacular dragonfly came alongside me. He was flying at the same speed and in the same direction. I slowed down. So did he. I sped up. He did too. He flew alongside me like that for a hundred yards then he veered off over the fields. Beautiful.
I like bugs. Some bugs…
Vick Mickunas
Permalink | Comments (5) | Post your comment | Categories: clearing the cobwebs
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By Raoul
September 14, 2010 10:21 PM | Link to this
Vick, I am not a bug lover. I have been bit, stung, and attacked by everything from bees, wasps, hornets, spiders, and most memorable of all, a beetle. I have suffered huge, mutacious lip damage, large sebacious festering wounds, and enough mosquito bites to allow me to invite myself on many fishing trips as the bait, which allows others to catch all the fish while I suffer all the bites. Don’t get me wrong; I enjoy nature and all it’s mysteries. But for some reason, nature does not reciprocate that love insofar as insects are concerned. I could tell you many stories of bites, stings, etc., but it would require too much typing. My stories are best told live (not that I am a great storyteller, but because I have so many bug stories to tell).
By Max
September 13, 2010 10:11 AM | Link to this
Vick, a major portion of my life has been lived in tropical and subtropical climates; some are considered vacation localities. For those who have insect ‘issues’ these regions would drive you absolutely mad. Paradise and Deet go hand-in-hand. But, as I found out during some cold weather military exercises back in the 1970’s, there are more mosquitos at the arctic circle than anywhere else in the world. You are truly fortunate, Vick, to have a bee keeper as a neighbor. As for the scourge of bedbugs, well, I guess my past would suggest I’ve had far greater scourges in my bed……
By Spray Baby Spray
September 13, 2010 8:25 AM | Link to this
Most bugs are harmful to plants. Some are harmful to humans.
By victor mickunas
September 12, 2010 7:31 PM | Link to this
LMJ, I’m no expert but from what I’m hearing the conditions were optimal this summer for this butterfly proliferation. What a spectacle they have created!
By lmj
September 12, 2010 6:20 PM | Link to this
I’m with you, Vick and let most live. I do have a couple, like mosquitos, that I hate. Is it just me or are there more butterflies fluttering by this summer?