Black wasp nest in deck?

5 years ago

Hi all!

Black wasps have been swarming my deck. I decided to try to take some pics. Is this a nest? Help! I want to go outside again!

Featured Answer

rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

5 years ago

A wooden deck might be a building material source for a number of wasps who construct a paper type of nest. But we need to see those pictures as well as your location.

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Comments (7)

millworkman
5 years ago
No pics showing..................
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PRO
The Logician LLC
5 years ago
Swarming as "in flight" or as crawling on the deck surface? Wasps unlikely to do this if deck has no food material spilled on it.
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I hate to say it, Martha, but I would spray it. They do sting and they kill caterpillars in large numbers. In one sense the choice is more wasps or more caterpillars. I have seen these wasps kill very large caterpillars. It isn't pretty seeing what happens. (I won't describe it.) I try very hard not to kill anything in the garden. I don't kill cockroaches or pretty much any other insects other than fire ants and wasps. A wasp really hurt my dog--stung her in the nose. I have friends and relatives who are allergic to wasp bites. My brother had a severe allergic reaction after a bite. The people at the hospital said it could have been life-threatening had he not been take there very soon afterwards. In his case the wasp got tangled up in his hair and stung him as he was trying to get it out. No doubt these wasps serve a purpose in the natural order of things. You are presenting them with a banquet of eggs and caterpillars. I'm sure they really like your garden. I do respect your opinion and that of others to not kill them. I simply have another point of view.
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Fori
5 years ago
I've had wasps taking the wood off my unmaintained deck before. I assume they built the actual nest under someone else's deck. :)
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Aurora Tee (Zone 6a)
5 years ago
They may be carpenter bees. Or possible a hornet wasp. Both have been a problem for me in my yard and deck.

The carpenter queen bores a fascinating hole and burrows in to lay egg in a tunnel. The ones swarming are the males. They don't physically attack but sure do look menacing. They remember their "home" area every year. From my research the carpenters are not pollinators so I did not feel bad plugging up the hole they made.

For the carpenters look on the underside of your deck joists (if you can) and the underside of the hand railing. Sometimes you can see the shavings they left behind as well. The hole is about the size of a dime. I think they choose the underside as it is less visible but more importantly is not painted or stained. As Fori importantly mentions, poorly maintained wood is more susceptible.

I sprayed their hole then glued in a wooden dowel. Unfortunately my efforts to stop the carpenters failed. We saw them buzzing again this year and as we pulled off the deck railings to re-build I found several holes on the unpainted underside. We had to pull off the rim joists as well and are putting in new ones. I plan on staining the underside this time. However, all the other joists are remaining so I hope those buggers don't start under there. They actually can do a lot of damage over time and ruin the structure.

The wasps made a paper nest high in a tree. Is your deck several stories above grade? My guess is that if your deck is close to grade, they are not making a nest there. If you were several stories up, it is possible. The color of the wasp nest tends to blend into the landscape and of old grayed wood. When I called the exterminator, they told me to leave the nest alone as it was high enough and they would not attack unless provoked. Unlike the carpenters, they will attack if they feel threatened. Do not destroy the nest if you can reach it.
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rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
5 years ago
HU, we are waiting on pictures from you. Without them, it's just a fruitless guessing game.
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greg_2015
5 years ago
I think the wasps have carried off the OP. Never to be heard or seen again.
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Black wasp nest in deck?

rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

Comments (7)

millworkman

The Logician LLC

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Fori

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