Queen wasp nests.

Cardynal

Hi , a couple of queen wasps have taken up residence in my shed , 1st image is a work in progress , 2 + 3 are of a completed nest , super little designers they are.
Regards Tom.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Nice shots. Sheds are favourite places for Wasp nests.

Just for clarity. It would not be 2 queen wasps. One queen per nest/hive. It's a wasp nest not a queen wasp nest.:)

Sid_Justice

Good stuff, what are you going to do with it? Let it be?

Cardynal

Yeah , just let nature take it's course.

Mothman

Cardynal wrote: »

Yeah , just let nature take it's course.

Excellent because wasp nests often provoke hysteria.

Unless the colony dies, these nests will grow and will be home to possibly 100s of wasps in late summer. Not usually too much of an issue. They are a huge help in the garden with pollinating, devouring aphids and the like. But also an issue with apples and plums

They may be issue for you if they are gaining access to shed via same entrance as you. depends how oten you go in.
I have removed nests.
One year I had 12 in the garden. One under the childrens slide.
One in a metal pipe that was on ground outside polytunnel.

Nests left alone include one in a tit box and any under ground though none of the underground nests have been adjacent to path so its easy to stay out of way.

cynder

thanks for that, i just went into my shed and spotted one. I removed it.

Had a wasp nest in the roof of our house once it must have been there for years it was massive nothing could kill them off, we eventually left, the amount of stings we got and the poor dog, they were killer wasps.

SouthernBelle

Can any of you tell me please if wasps return to a previous nest. We had (as mothman mentions) 100's of wasps in our shed by the end of last summer. I'm anxious that we'll have another nest this year.

Mothman

SouthernBelle wrote: »

Can any of you tell me please if wasps return to a previous nest. We had (as mothman mentions) 100's of wasps in our shed by the end of last summer. I'm anxious that we'll have another nest this year.

No.
Only Queen wasps hibernates. All the others die and the Queen starts from scratch each year. Now it could be the situation that a Queen chooses shed this year making it seem as if they are reusing same nest.

SouthernBelle

Thanks for the quick reply mothman. We plan on dismantling our ageing shed in the next few weeks and hoping we have no 'visitors' before then!

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

grindelwald wrote: »

Had a wasp nest in the roof of our house once it must have been there for years

Afraid not. All but the Queen die off in Winter and a new nest built every year.

cynder

well they must have been bees then, they were there year round but way more active in the summer 1000's of them. only a few around in winter.

they could squeeze through the gap in the cupboard and would fall on you when you were in the bath. They were very very angry and would chase you. The hive was at least 5 feet x 8 feet, it took up a hugh amount of space in the attic.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Mothman know more than me on this subject but I understand Bumble Bees to be (pun not intended) the same as Wasps. Honey Bees aren't angry and while I know domestic hives are helped through the Wunter i don't know about those in the wild.

Mothman

Wild hives don't need help because their honey store isn't stolen!!

Honey Bees get angry if you kill one. The aroma given off from a squashed Honey Bee spurs the others into action!

Most (in not all) of the wild hives have died because of Varroa Mite. 5 years ago Honey Bees would be seen by the dozen, Now I'm lucky to see one! I saw one yesterday. Couple years ago I saw none

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Thank you wise one!

I have quite a few Honey Bees at the heather in my garden this year. Do they travel far from the hive? There are no beekeepers in the locality so I assume they are wild.

Mothman

They typically travel 2 miles!! but I think up to 4 miles

fryup

Correct me if i'm wrong - but isn't thats how the chinese invented paper by studying how the wasps make nests.

Jinnyjoe1

I have what looks like a wasps nest in my shed which we are in process of getting advice to get rid of as I have small children. But last week I went to kill what I thought was a large fly only to discover when I did kill it it was a black wasp which I've never seen before. Is this the queen wasp or just an ordinary worker wasp, I'd be very interested to know. thanks :rolleyes:

Mothman

Jinnyjoe1 wrote: »

I have what looks like a wasps nest in my shed which we are in process of getting advice to get rid of as I have small children. But last week I went to kill what I thought was a large fly only to discover when I did kill it it was a black wasp which I've never seen before. Is this the queen wasp or just an ordinary worker wasp, I'd be very interested to know. thanks :rolleyes:

The black wasp was possibly a parasitic wasp. It may lay eggs in a caterpillar ot something like that. Not an issue for humans.

As for social wasps, they are very helpful around the garden.....until fruit time. Pollinate, eat pests etc. Oops just seen that I've mentioned this already Some birds get the knack of eating them as well.

As for removing. do the following at night, if possible a cool night. The wasps will be docile.
If you can fit a large jar over the nest. I'm assuming its about tennis ball size, With the jar tight to roof, so sealing the occupants in, slide a piece of card board (cereal packet) between jar and roof. It may need a little hacking to get nest from where its mounted. You can then get the lid on without letting the unhappy occupants out.

Qualitymark

Kaylani Tight Sorbet wrote: »

Mothman know more than me on this subject but I understand Bumble Bees to be (pun not intended) the same as Wasps. Honey Bees aren't angry and while I know domestic hives are helped through the Wunter i don't know about those in the wild.

I have to correct you there, Kaylani Tight Sorbet. I got very badly stung as a child by bees from a beehive. A misunderstanding occurred; I was watching them with interest, and they thought I had designs of harming them.

harryd2

Mothman wrote: »

Unless the colony dies, these nests will grow and will be home to possibly 100s of wasps in late summer. Not usually too much of an issue. They are a huge help in the garden with pollinating, devouring aphids and the like. But also an issue with apples and plums

They may be issue for you if they are gaining access to shed via same entrance as you. depends how oten you go in.
I have removed nests.
One year I had 12 in the garden. One under the childrens slide.
One in a metal pipe that was on ground outside polytunnel.
.

Currently have a nest very similar to the OPs.
It's in a shed which we need access to.
It's small atm, but getting bigger and if it's going to house 100s of wasps later it might be best to get rid of now rather than later?
I'd prefer to leave it and let nature takes its course, but as we'll be in and out of the shed it could be an issue later..

Mothman

harryd2 wrote: »

Currently have a nest very similar to the OPs.
It's in a shed which we need access to.
It's small atm, but getting bigger and if it's going to house 100s of wasps later it might be best to get rid of now rather than later?
I'd prefer to leave it and let nature takes its course, but as we'll be in and out of the shed it could be an issue later..

I leave as many nests as I can but I have already removed 2 from a loft that we use regularly. A late summer nest in a living area can be problematic enough as to render it unusable.
Removing now can be done easily without the use of chemicals and it gives the Queen a chance to start again...hopefully elsewhere, though they often persist with same site

bob2oo7

Hi all

I have a wasps nest in my shed (image attached)

Just wondering what to do?

Dont really want to get rid of it, would be happy to let them live there, but does this mean the shed is a no go zone?

Shed is very very small, and the nest is just above the door

If we do have to get rid of it, how do we go about doing this?

Thanks in advance

Teyla Emmagan

That is mad, have never seen a wasp's nest like that. Nice photo.

They're not just going to stay in the shed unfortunately, when they're chasing you around the garden in the middle of your Sunday BBQ come July you may not feel as 'live and let live'. Wait and see I guess, maybe it won't become a problem. Am sure the nest is probably protected by law unless it becomes a health hazard or something though.

bob2oo7

Teyla Emmagan wrote: »

That is mad, have never seen a wasp's nest like that. Nice photo.

They're not just going to stay in the shed unfortunately, when they're chasing you around the garden in the middle of your Sunday BBQ come July you may not feel as 'live and let live'. Wait and see I guess, maybe it won't become a problem. Am sure the nest is probably protected by law unless it becomes a health hazard or something though.

Ive decided to get rid of it, between kids and dogs we cant really have it around

I have only seen one wasp in it, which I presume is the queen and the eggs havent hatched yet

Any advice? Jam Jar?

Scotty #

Qualitymark wrote: »

I have to correct you there, Srameen. I got very badly stung as a child by bees from a beehive.

I remember as a nipper cutting my neighbours grass and when I'd do around the bee hives it would drive them mad. My neighbour used to let me help collect the honey. First time I ever got stung was when I spotted a bee INSIDE my face net. Lol... I panicked and couldn't get the net off fast enough. It stung my on the top of my head. I was about 7 or 8.

The next time I was stung was by a wasp when I was about 20 and stood on a nest. We were clearing out some old dog kennels and they were in the straw. I got stung on the ankle and my leg swelled up huge. My calf was as big as my thigh. My doctor told me if I ever get stung on top half of my body I'm in serious trouble :eek:.