Wasps

[She25]

I have a cratch cover and grow herbs there but no flowers. When I've had the side rolled up for a few days and take it back down I noticed a few dead wasps in the folds.

 

Today I've basically been held hostage by three live ones that appeared as I wanted to go out (yes I'm VERY scared of them and had no spray to deal with it!)

 

Does anybody else find they like to shelter under the cratch cover this time of year, and more importantly, what are your tips for getting rid and putting off?

 

 

[PaulG]

I have a cratch cover and grow herbs there but no flowers. When I've had the side rolled up for a few days and take it back down I noticed a few dead wasps in the folds.

 

Today I've basically been held hostage by three live ones that appeared as I wanted to go out (yes I'm VERY scared of them and had no spray to deal with it!)

 

Does anybody else find they like to shelter under the cratch cover this time of year, and more importantly, what are your tips for getting rid and putting off?

 

 

They are usually queen wasps looking for a place to overwinter. Workers usually die in the nests.

http://www.wasp-removal.com/wasp-lifecycle.php

 

Edited to say that ordinary fly spray is effective if you don't want to get close to them.

Edited December 8, 2016 by PaulG

[WotEver]

Mrs Ever was last week stung by a wasp (twice! miserable creature that it was) that had decided to hibernate in the collar of a winter coat hung near the back door. They're even more grumpy than Geo at this time of the year.

[ditchcrawler]

We have had several at home over the past couple of weeks

[matty40s]

Squashed a couple yesterday which came out of the cratch cover with the mild weather.

Evil creatures.

[Geo]

Mrs Ever was last week stung by a wasp (twice! miserable creature that it was) that had decided to hibernate in the collar of a winter coat hung near the back door. They're even more grumpy than Geo at this time of the year.

 

lol I haven't been grumpy for years, think you misrepresent me lol

 

ETA My PA says I can be a tiny bit grumpy on Monday morning until I have had a cup of tea.

Edited December 8, 2016 by Geo

[Phil Ambrose]

Huh, don't talk to me about wasps , we have been finding them in sacks of Taybrite, they appear to get in via the odd small hole that you get in the sacks. they survive being poured into the coal bucket along with the nuggets and are comatose but as the bucket sits near the fire they warm up and become active.

I first noticed one the other week when making up the fire in the morning, I thought somebody was being a bit cheeky firing up a chain saw at 7-00am but soon realised the buzz saw was following me around the boat. I have found half a dozen since and my neighbours have had the same problem. the coal merchant offered a little gem by saying they may get in prior to bagging up.

Phil

[WotEver]

Do wasps serve any purpose on this earth other than annoying other creatures? They don't pollinate do they?

[ditchcrawler]

Do wasps serve any purpose on this earth other than annoying other creatures? They don't pollinate do they?

Everything has a purpose. In early summer wasps, like bees, pollinate plants and flowers as they feed on nectar. If we were to eradicate all wasps it would cause more problems than it would solve. So, wasps do serve a purpose and despite being a problem at certain times of the year, they are a beneficial insect. So in the natural world, wasps although irritating to humans, have their role to play.

Wasps and hornets are predatory insects and spend a lot of their time hunting and catching smaller insects to feed to their larvae (young wasp grubs). The insect prey is killed by the adult wasps and chewed up into small food packages and taken back to the nest. These food parcels are then fed to the young wasp larvae which turn the exoskeletons (chitin) of these prey insects into a sugary solution which they feed back to the adult wasps.

It is difficult to guess the exact numbers of insects which are killed by a single wasp colony through the course of a summer. It has been suggested that a single wasp nest will catch approx 5 metric tons of insects in one year. Whilst we are not entirely convinced of that number whatever it actually is, it will be substantial.

[Sea Dog]

That's a pretty interesting post, DC! I've learned something today.

[ditchcrawler]

That's a pretty interesting post, DC! I've learned something today.

I was surprised when I saw it on the TV earlier this year

[WotEver]

Every day I learn something new

[Murflynn]

............ but unfortunately one of their favourite foods is honey bees.

[hounddog]

Once the larva have all metamorphosed the wasps then have to go searching for sugar which when they become more noticeable in late summer and early autumn. Some say their aggression is caused by the alcohol but perhaps that's an anthromorphism too far.

[mross]

Mrs Ever was last week stung by a wasp (twice! miserable creature that it was) that had decided to hibernate in the collar of a winter coat hung near the back door. They're even more grumpy than Geo at this time of the year.

I've not been stung since I was a child. how painful was the sting? Sore or agony? My sympathies to your boss.

[Athy]

Once the larva have all metamorphosed the wasps then have to go searching for sugar which when they become more noticeable in late summer and early autumn. Some say their aggression is caused by the alcohol but perhaps that's an anthromorphism too far.

I was told this by my Dad, who was rarely wrong (he told me).

In autumn the wasps would feed on rotting fruit, whose nectar would be turning to alcohol, leading to erratic and aggressive behaviour. Pissed wasps you don't need.

[tree monkey]

I was told this by my Dad, who was rarely wrong (he told me).

In autumn the wasps would feed on rotting fruit, whose nectar would be turning to alcohol, leading to erratic and aggressive behaviour. Pissed wasps you don't need.

To be pedantic its the sugars in the fruit not nectar.

Walk through an orchard in the autumn and you can smell the fermentation

[WotEver]

I've not been stung since I was a child. how painful was the sting? Sore or agony? My sympathies to your boss.

Probably a 6 or 7 initially but some of that I guess was caused by shock & outrage. Dropped to a 3 and dropping after a little while and took about 6 hours to completely go away.

[Athy]

To be pedantic its the sugars in the fruit not nectar.

Walk through an orchard in the autumn and you can smell the fermentation

Yes, we have five apple trees in our garden and, if they have had a productive year, we get that aroma from the windfalls, as we walk down the garden dodging the drunk and disorderly wasps.

Are sugar and nectar not related? By which I mean, does the one not contain the other?

[tree monkey]

Yes, we have five apple trees in our garden and, if they have had a productive year, we get that aroma from the windfalls, as we walk down the garden dodging the drunk and disorderly wasps.

Are sugar and nectar not related? By which I mean, does the one not contain the other?

Both contain sugar but nectar is produced by the flowers and doesn't hang around long enough to ferment normally.

The natural yeasts on the fruit are converting the sugars in the fruit into alcohol, cider in the wild

 

Mind you I dont drink cider after a teenage overindulgence

[Grassman]

The wasps at this time of year are desperate for warmth, so a nice warm cratch would be attractive especially if it's had the sun on it for a while, as would be the inside of a boat with the stove on.

 

As others have said, they do serve a purpose and if you're a keen gardener even more so because they devour aphids that harm your plants such as greenfly.

 

I know one of the top entomologists in the country and he's told me another interesting fact though somewhat controversial, is that recent research has shown that a wasp sting can cause a heart attack. Previously it hasn't been linked because this doesn't happen until 2-3 weeks after the sting. I don't think it's known yet whether those affected were prone to a heart attack anyway but it's something that is being further researched.

 

I had a different type of delayed symptom in the summer when after having been stung by a honeybee, I came out in rashes in various parts of my body 2 weeks afterwards (nowhere near the sting). So I took an antihistamine tablet and within 24 hours the rashes had virtually disappeared, and were gone completely after taking another tablet the next day. I've been stung loads of times as I was a pest controller for 10 years and previously never suffered any adverse reactions to stings.

 

So I think in future, if I get stung I will always take an antihistamine tablet as soon as possible afterwards and the next day too as it may just help.

[PaulG]

I was told this by my Dad, who was rarely wrong (he told me).

In autumn the wasps would feed on rotting fruit, whose nectar would be turning to alcohol, leading to erratic and aggressive behaviour. Pissed wasps you don't need.

In the area where I live there were extensive fruit orchards - loads of plums, also apples, pears, etc. Not so many nowadays.

Wasps were a real nuisance in the autumn, when they were drunk most of the time.

One of the local canning factories put a bounty on wasp nests as they were attracted in large numbers by the smell coming from the factory.

[Machpoint005]

Do wasps serve any purpose on this earth other than annoying other creatures? They don't pollinate do they?

 

Purpose? No, they have a way of making a living that works for them. Otherwise (like 99% around of species that have ever existed) they would be extinct.

>> Mind you I don't drink cider after a teenage overindulgence <<

 

I don't drink cider because most of the commercial mass-produced stuff is like fizzy chemical pop!

[zenataomm]

Bees make honey

Wasps (it seems) make Taybrite

[WotEver]

Bees make honey

Wasps (it seems) make Taybrite

 

I knew they must have a purpose.