STINGING
CREATURES
(click picture to enlarge)
Common Name- The German yellowjacket
Identification- V. germanica is yellow and black. The antennal scape
is all black, as opposed to black with yellow. The genal area is nearly
continuous yellow. At least the second gastral tergum is usually with free black
spots; in some melanic morphs, there are no free black spots. This species of
yellowjacket is commonly found throughout most urban areas in the eastern half
of the United States. Most nests have 1,000-3000 workers, although some (like
that pictured here) might have up to 5,000 workers. The German yellowjacket is a
both a voracious predator and scavenger.
Paper
Wasps, Hornets, and Yellow jackets
 
Paper wasps and hornets may
become a nuisance when nesting around homes and other structures where people
live, work or play. Although considered beneficial to agriculture, (since
northern or paper wasps feed abundantly on corn earworms, armyworms, tobacco
hornworms, etc. and hornets on house flies, blow flies, harmful caterpillars,
etc.), it is their painful stinging ability that causes alarm and fear.
Nevertheless, unless the threat of stings and nest location present a hazard, it
is often best to wait for Mother Nature to kill these annual colonies with
freezing temperatures in late November and December. Stinging workers do not
survive the winter, and the same nest usually is not reused the following year,
except by the yellow and black dominulus paper wasp, on occasion.
Identification
The northern or
paper wasp is about 3/4 to 1-inch long, slender, narrow waist with long legs and
reddish-orange to dark brown or black in color. There are yellowish markings on
the abdomen (rear body part). Paper-like nests, shaped like tiny umbrellas, are
suspended by a short stem attached to eaves, window frames, porch ceilings,
attic rafters, etc. Each nest consists of a horizontal layer or "tier"
of circular comb of hexagonal (six-sided) cells not enclosed by a paper-like
envelope. The ends of the cells are open with the heads of the larvae exposed to
view.
New to Ohio in
1991, the dominulus paper wasp is somewhat smaller than our native northern
paper wasp. It is black with bright, yellow stripes and spots resembling
yellow-jacket wasps in color.
Bald-faced
hornets are up to 3/4-inch long with black and ivory white markings on the face,
thorax (middle body part) and tip of the abdomen. Paper-like nests are
grayish-brown, inverted, pear-shaped up to three feet tall with the nest
entrance at the bottom. Each nest consists of a number of horizontal layers,
stories or "tiers" of circular combs, one below the other completely
enclosed by a paper-like envelope as a covering. Also, the cells are not exposed
to view.
Life
Cycle and Habits
Paper wasps and
hornets are social insects, living in colonies containing workers, queens and
males. Colonies are annual with only inseminated queens over wintering.
Fertilized queens occur in protected places such as houses and other structures,
hollow logs, in stumps, under bark, in leaf litter, in soil cavities, etc.
Queens emerge during the warm days of late April or early May, select a nest
site and build a small paper nest in which eggs are laid. One egg is laid in
each cell. As she adds more cells around the edge, eggs are deposited. Larvae in
the center are older with the younger larvae further out. It is the cells at the
rim of the nest which contain eggs. After eggs hatch, the queen feeds the young
larvae. When larvae are ready to pupate, cells are covered with silk, forming
little domes over the individual openings. Larvae pupate, emerging later as
small, infertile females called "workers." By mid-June, the first
adult workers emerge and assume the tasks of nest expansion, foraging for food,
caring for the queen and larvae and defending the colony. Remember with paper
wasps, the nest is the work of a single female, has a single layer or
"tier" of cells and is not enclosed by envelopes. In hornets, the
nests usually consist of a number of stories or "tiers," one below the
other and completely enclosed by spherical walls. Each cell may be used for two
or three successive batches of brood.
Adult food
consists of nectar or other sugary solutions such as honeydew and the juices of
ripe fruits. Paper wasps and hornets also feed on bits of caterpillars or flies
that are caught and partially chewed before presenting to their young. Hornets
may be seen almost any summer day engaged in their winged pursuit of flies.
Northern or
paper wasps nest in window sills, along eaves and in open areas sheltered from
the rain. It is expected that the dominulus paper wasp will become a permanent,
widespread and common resident in Ohio. Reports indicate it is much more
"alert to activity near its nests" than our present indigenous paper
wasp species.
Sting Prevention
Paper wasps and
hornets have a lance-like stinger and can sting repeatedly. When a paper wasp or
hornet is near you, slowly raise your hands to protect your face, remaining calm
and stationary for a while and then move very slowly away. Never swing, strike
or run rapidly away since quick movement often provokes attack and painful
stings. Restrain children from throwing rocks or spraying nests with water.
Avoid creating loud noises and disturbance near the nest.
When outdoors,
avoid the use of heavily scented soaps, shampoos, perfumes, colognes,
after-shaves and cosmetics. Avoid shiny buckles and jewelry. Cover exposed skin
and wear gray, white or tan rather than bright colors.
Also, remember
that if a paper wasp or hornet gets into the automobile while driving, never
panic. It wants out of the car as much as you want it out. Slowly pull over off
the road, and open the car windows and doors. Trying to remove or kill a paper
wasp or hornet while the car is moving can result in accidents.
Treatment of Stings
After being
stung, immediately apply a poultice of meat tenderizer to the wound. If the
sting is not deep, this will break down the components of the sting fluid,
reducing the pain.
A commercial
preparation such as a sting kill swab can be used. Antihistamine ointments and
tablets taken orally appear effective in reducing sting reactions. Persons
highly sensitive to stings should consider a desenitization program in an
allergy clinic. Consult your physician about medical kits such as Ana-Kit, which
contains antihistamine tablets and aqueous epinephrine (adrenalin) administered
by injection, a tourniquet and sterile alcohol swabs for cleaning the injection
site. Frequently, a bronchodilator material (inhaler) is needed.
Hypersensitive
persons should never be alone when outdoors at the peak season of wasp and
hornet activity. If stung, help may be needed to start prompt emergency
treatment measures. Medic Alert Tags can be purchased from Medic Alert
Foundation, Box 1009, Turlock, California 95381-1009, Telephone: 209-668-3333.
Control
Measures
Chemical control
should be a last resort as worker populations are gone after a hard freeze or
several frosts. There are literally hundreds of insecticide products in various
formulations labeled for wasp and hornet control. Control of these social wasps,
although usually not difficult, has its element of risk in being stung. It is
best to conduct control operations on nests at dusk or after dusk to avoid being
stung, since most of the paper wasps will have returned to their nest. If
applications must be made during daylight hours, the use of protective
equipment, such as gloves, hat, bee veil, coveralls, etc., will help prevent
stings from any airborne wasps.
For control of
wasps and hornets that build aerial nests near windows, eaves, in trees, etc.,
insecticides are formulated in pressurized containers that emit a long, narrow
stream of spray 15 to 20 feet. Wasp freeze or wasp stopper compounds, containing
highly volatile solvents mixed with resmethrin, pyrethrins, carbamates or some
of the newer pyrethroids, produce almost instant knockdown for wasps hit. By
approaching a hornet nest, spraying in a sweeping motion, the area can be
cleared of guards at the nest, followed by directing the spray stream into the
entrance hole at the nest bottom to kill those inside. During the day, this
technique does not alarm other hornets returning from the field. No other
insecticide needs to be introduced into the nest since all adults present are
killed and the immature stages (eggs and larvae) die from lack of care. Usually
after one to two days, the nest can be removed carefully. Northern or paper wasp
nests are easier to treat.
Yellow jackets
Late
summer is the time of year when populations of yellow-jackets (commonly called
"bees") and other social wasps become large and noticeable. The wasps
have been present since spring, but because colonies start as a single queen in
May, populations are very small through the early part of the summer. Yellow
jacket wasp populations reach a peak at about the time of the Iowa State Fair
when each nest may have up to approximately 5,000 wasps.
Yellow-jackets
build paper nests similar to hornets, but either in the ground, a log or
landscape timber or building wall or attic. Yellow jackets are commonly observed
hovering back and forth at the small nest opening or around garbage cans and
other areas where they forage for food. The workers from the colony travel up to
a few hundred yards from the nest while looking for food. In the early summer
the wasps forage for caterpillars and other "meat" items, but in the
fall prefer sweets such as pop and candy residue in garbage cans.
Yellow jacket
Control. If a nest is located where
it is out of the way and not likely to be disturbed, it is best left alone. If,
however, a nest is located in a "high traffic" area such as along
walks or near doorways, control is justified to reduce the threat of being
stung.
Be careful.
Without the proper protection equipment you are likely to get stung.
|
Toll
Free voice line 1877-207-9640
