It's not often that we get to mix baseball and pests in our blog, but today we learned that the San Francisco Giants and Cincinnati Reds game was delayed by almost 20 minutes due to swarming bees.
You can read different takes on this story from the Washington Post, NBC News, and on the Major League Baseball website, and see as one Reds player pretended to spray a pesticide to kill the bees. 
In a practical sense though, what would you do if you were caught up in a bee swarm, perhaps not while playing in the Big Leagues but in the backyard playing catch?
Luckily, UC IPM has information to help you handle this situation. If you encounter a swarm of bees on your property, you can read about bee behavior and how to remove them in the Pest Notes: Removing Honey Bee Swarms and Established Hives.
Are you allergic to or fearful of bee or wasp stings? Read about how to distinguish between bees, yellowjackets, and other wasps, potential effects of bee and wasp stings, and to avoid getting stung in the Pest Notes: Bee and Wasp Stings.
While the player was joking about spraying an insecticide and did not actually have any pesticide in the backpack sprayer on his back, anyone planning to spray a pesticide should make sure they are prepared. To ensure you are spraying a pesticide as safely as possible, see the publication Pesticides: Safe and Effective Use in the Home and Landscape.
Stay safe out there and... play ball!
Author - Associate Director for Urban & Community IPM/ Area Urban IPM Advisor
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