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Northwestern Gardening

Wasp nest id?

lisaonbainbridge

16 years ago

We have wasp nests on the eaves under the patio overhang--globe shaped, light brown with grayish horizontal streaks, entrance hole at the bottom.

Like to know what they are and if they need to be removed. Getting mixed info on the net.

Thanks

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Comments (4)

jean001
16 years ago
Rather sounds like a nest of yellow jackets or bald-faced hornets.

If so, the colony is there for just the season. All inhabitants, except the mated queens, will die by the end of the year -- around here, that's often mid-December. The queens will survive the winter elsewhere.

So, because these wasps are beneficial in that they help you limit other insects, the usual guideline is to ignore the nest if possible, then remove it after the residents have died.

While the wasps are present, they won't bother you unless you mess with their nest or otherwise harass them.
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dutch62
15 years ago
Sounds like bald faced hornets to me. They can be real nasty so make sure you know what and how to do or it could be trouble. For some quick info check this out.

Good Luck and be careful

Here is a link that might be useful: Bald faced hornets
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When wasps build nests where we don't want them, we spray the nest with water. The reason wasps build nest under eaves and porches (and light fixtures) is because these places are sheltered. If they keep getting wet, they'll abandon the nest and find a more suitable place. I don't know a lot about light fixtures, but can imagine that where the wires are, they will crawl through those small spaces.
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Oh my, Aloha - 20 nests?! I've wondered if we might get them in our attic, too, as late last summer a piece of our vinyl siding fell off of the roof edge. We haven't put it back on yet as it's all the way to the top and we'll need a really tall ladder to get up there. We may have to hire someone for that job - neither one of us wants to, or should be, on a ladder that tall! I know what you mean, Skybird, about seeing old nests around and yet still see the wasps. Maybe they were their old nests?! I don't know. And I also thought that one fake nest looked like a chinese lantern - it's the same kind of fabric and wire frame. Also, you can't see it in the pic, but it has a hole in the side so it looks like a nest of sorts. But I kinda of wonder if the wasps would just go inside of it and make a nest of their own there! I know they did that in the bird houses I put up along our fence for decoration - I had to plug up the holes so they wouldn't do that any more. So I couldn't resist making my own version of the fake wasp nest, just to see if the concept would work. I recycled/upcycled items I had around the house already to make it - took two 5" peat pots and placed them together at the large end, then slipped a plastic mesh wrap (that they put over the glass bottle of wine I bought at Total Beverage) over them to hold them together, then glued the seam. I spray painted it black, but didn't like the looks of it. So I covered it all with paper mache, I then spray painted it black with a little gray. Now, it's not any prettier than the waspinator, and maybe even a bit uglier, but didn't really cost me anything to make! Maybe this is close enough in shape to fool the foolish wasps - we'll see! If it does, I'll make some more!! Here's my recycled/upcycled wasp nest decoy:
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Embothrium
15 years ago
The other kind that does this is European hornet. Yellowjackets are the comparatively docile little native ones that nest in the ground. European hornets are also black-and-yellow.

You can't have these making big bags under your eaves as they will eventually begin to attack people coming near. In the defense of the nest mode they fly right to you, land, and begin multiple burning stinging - there is no buzzing around to ward you off beforehand.
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morz8 - Washington Coast
15 years ago
The light brown with streaks rather than gray sounds like bald faced hornet to me, but have you seen the wasps coming or going to know size or color?

I know they are beneficial, but they don't get to live anywhere I'm going to live...like my/your patio. I tangled with an unnoticed nest of bald faced hornets when pruning a rhododendron for a neighbor a few years ago (picture down on my knees, wedged in between shrub and fence, happily removing limbs she couldn't easily get to at 80 yrs old) and while not allergic, I felt ill from the stings for about 2 days with swelling and redness at the sting sites (neck), headache...I'd rather not experience that again. They didn't warn me I was too close, just began stinging.

More to the story, the nest was in the rhododendron, we thought rather than call an exterminator (her budget sparse) or risk burning leaves with a heavy dose of homeowner type spray, we would go after dark and cut the nest from the shrub. The plan was to have the nest fall into a 5 gal bucket of hot soapy water (night, flashlights)...but the nest fell, hung up on another branch and missed the bucket completely. If you ever wondered, they will come out at night if disturbed...we did have to use the spray.
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