Stay in your house.
Obviously the easy answer! But that’s the tune of the day this summer, with constant rain, cloudy skies and intense heat.
I was finally getting started on the 5th area around the front grass area, digging out Foxtail that continue to pop up instead of seedlings that I planted. The bees were humming, butterflies flying, birds chirping, and no one but the obsessive chipmunk overhead was bothering with me at all.
I pulled up a big batch of Foxtail and a bee smacked me on the head. I thought it was a bee, anyway. I said “Hey!” and swatted it back, which normally sends the Carpentar bees scattering and laughing (as far as I can tell.)
But it hit again. Same spot. Within seconds, I felt the jarring sting of a ground wasp in the side of my shirt. Before I “got it,” I was swarmed. They chased me across the entire property, while I was running for the hose, and even took some time to dissipate after I sprayed directly overhead – rain shower style.
I ended up with 11 stings, the original one was so hard, the bee was stuck halfway through my cotton TShirt.
I later learned that I’d been given a chance, but ignored it. Apparently, that first tap was warning #1. At that point, the bee sets a pheramone scent on the intruder’s skin, in case guideance is needed for the soldiers protecting their Queen.
The 2nd tap was a “call to action,” which is why the stings began so quickly afterward.
My own wake up call was to pay attention to the warnings. Animals would rather we run than make them risk their lives. My 2nd understanding was that my fairly mild reaction was different from bees that have caused more severe reactions in the past. A few spots hurt a bit when touched for a day or so, the others disappeared by morning. I got lucky, but I’ll remember the signs in the future! One headbutt and I’m outta there!