insects

How Long Does It Take A Spider To Spin a Web?

/ Mark Danenhauer

It is always fun to be the first one up in the morning to be hiking along a trail in the Rockies.  You are the first one there to wander along the trail and discover what happened to the area during the night.

Well, at least it is mostly fun.  As a short dog I am able to run around and under things pretty easily.  But, sometimes when I am the first one on the trail and I run or jump along I do have the misfortune of running into a spider web.  It is always a weird feeling to be running along happily one minute and then the next minute to have a sticky web draped across my face.

I just don’t understand how that web gets there?  How can there be a spider web across the middle of a hiking trail?  That got me wondering how long does it take a spider to spin a web? Continue reading →

Do Bees Die After They Sting You?

/ Mark Danenhauer

If a bee stings you it will die.

If you are at all like me, then you have heard someone say this before.  But, that is not actually true for most bees.  There are about 25,000 different kinds of bees in the world with about 4,000 in the USA and even fewer in the Rocky Mountains.  Of all those different kinds of bees, there is only one kind that dies after it stings you – the honey bee. Continue reading →

What Happens to Mosquitoes in Winter?

/ Mark Danenhauer

I love running around the Rocky Mountains, jumping over logs, chasing squirrels, and drinking out of a mountain stream or just sitting in one to cool off on a hot day.  In a lot of ways it feels like paradise since it is so much fun.

bugs mosquitoe sucking blood

Unfortunately, there are a few things that can make a day in the Rocky Mountains a little bit less than perfect.  The weather could suddenly turn bad with rain, thunder, or even snow.  Or there could be biting flies around or even tons of mosquitoes.  Anytime in the summer that you go up to the mountains you are risking running into these problems.  But, in the winter, you don’t have to worry about the bugs and mosquitoes. Continue reading →