Bees and Wasps Bees and wasps and other flying insects are
generally beneficial. Bees help pollinate flowers. Wasps are parasitic toward
some harmful creatures such as caterpillars that can destroy a large area of
crops.
But if not dealt with properly, bees and wasps can be a danger.
These insects are stinging insects and can deal a sting that is very painful.
Some people have allergic reactions causing the need for immediate medical
attention.
Wasps are especially known for aggressive behaviours. A wasp
known as the Yellow Jacket is very aggressive. Bees generally are not as
aggressive. But a genetically altered version of honey bees often called
Africanized Honey bees or Killer Bees are very aggressive and attacks have been
known to take lives of their victims.
Bee Control There are
many ways to be rid of bees and wasps. These methods can include nest or hive
control, chemical control and professional service control.
Controlling
the nest is a hard thing to do for bees and especially wasps. You first must
remove the insects themselves. Most times this can be done with smoke used in
bee culture, the raising of bees. Physical removal or relocation of the nest is
possible but sometimes the chances of the nest being destroyed or injured can
occur.
Chemical sprays can be used to kill the bees and wasps. There are
many commercial standard sprays at any home and garden store and most
supermarkets carry these as well.
Professional services, the exterminator
services, are needed when bees and wasps have nests that are in extreme places
such as inside a home, inside the insulation or high in trees or in hard to
reach places. These services have varied costs depending on the service needed
so call around to find out the range of costs.
Wasps and bees are
beneficial insects, although they are generally considered to be pests because
of their ability to sting. Wasps, in particular, can become a problem in autumn
when they may disrupt many outdoor activities. People often mistakenly call all
stinging insects "bees". While both social wasps and bees live in colonies ruled
by queens and maintained by workers, they look and behave differently. It is
important to distinguish between these insects because different methods may be
necessary to control them if they become a nuisance.
Appearance Wasps have a slender body with a narrow waist,
slender, cylindrical legs, and appear smoothed-skinned and shiny. European
wasps, Yellow-jackets, hornets, and paper wasps are the most common types of
wasps encountered by people.
Bees are robust-bodied and very hairy
compared with wasps . Their hind legs are flattened for collecting and
transporting pollen. Bees are important pollinators. Honey bees are responsible
for more than 80% of the pollination required by most fruits, legumes, and
vegetable seed plants as well as many ornamentals that are grown in our
landscapes.
Food Preferences Wasps are predators, feeding
insects and other arthropods to their young, which develop in the nest. They are
beneficial because they prey on many insects, including caterpillars, flies,
crickets, and other pests. During late summer and Autumn, as queens stop laying
eggs and their nests decline, wasps change their food gathering priorities and
are more interested in collecting sweets and other carbohydrates. Some wasps may
become aggressive scavengers around human food and may be common around outdoor
activities where food or drinks are served.
Bees feed only on nectar
(carbohydrates) and pollen (protein) from flowers. Honey bees sometimes visit
trash cans and soft-drink containers to feed on sugary foods.
Nesting
Sites Yellow-jackets, European wasps, and paper wasps make nests from a
papery pulp comprised of chewed-up wood fibres mixed with saliva. Yellow-jacket
and mud wasps nests consist of a series of rounded combs stacked in tiers. These
combs are covered by an envelope consisting of several layers of pulp . Paper
wasps construct only one comb without any protective envelope . These insects
are sometimes known as umbrella wasps because of the shape of their nest.
Yellow-jackets, European wasps, and paper wasps nest in quiet, out of
the way places. Unfortunately, in urban areas this may conflict with people and
their interests. Yellow-jackets commonly build nests below ground in old
rodent burrows or other cavities. They can also build nests in trees, shrubs,
under eaves, and inside attics or wall voids. European wasps commonly build
nests in trees, gardens as well as under eaves and along the sides of buildings.
Paper wasps build nests under any horizontal surface and are commonly
found on limbs, eaves of buildings, beams and supports in roof voids, garages,
barns, sheds, and other similar places .
Honey bees make a series of
vertical honey combs made of wax. Their colonies are mostly in manufactured
hives but they do occasionally nest in cavities in large trees, voids in
building walls, or other protected areas.
Mortar bees use old mice
burrows, cavities in buildings, and other locations to make their nests. Like
honey bees, Mortar bees make cells of wax.
Life Cycle of Wasps and
Bees Bees have annual colonies that last for only one year. The colony
dies in the Autumn with only the newly produced queens surviving the winter. The
new queens leave their nests during late summer and mate with males. The queens
then seek out sites, such as under loose bark, in rotted logs, under eaves or
tiles, and in other small crevices and spaces, where they become dormant. These
queens become active the following spring when temperatures warm. They search
for favourable nesting sites to construct new nests. They do not reuse old
nests.
Honey bees are perennial insects with colonies that survive more than
one year. Honey bees form a cluster when hive temperatures approach 21° C. As
the temperature drops, the cluster of bees becomes more compact. Bees inside
this mass consume honey and generate heat so that those in the cluster do not
freeze. As long as honey is available in the cluster, a strong colony can
withstand temperatures down to -5°C or lower for extended periods.
Wasp and Bee Stings Wasps and bees sting to defend themselves
or their colony. Stinging involves the injection of a protein venom that causes
pain and other reactions.
Wasps and Mortar bees can sting more than once
because they are able to pull out their stinger without injury to themselves. If
you are stung by a wasp or bumble bee, the stinger is not left in your skin.
Honey bees have barbs on their stinger which remain hooked in the skin.
The stinger, which is connected to the digestive system of the bee, is torn out
of the abdomen as the bee attempts to fly away. As a result, the bee soon dies.
If you are stung by a honey bee, scratch out the stinger (with its attached
venom gland) with your fingernail as soon as possible. Do not try to pull out
the stinger between two fingers. Doing so only forces more venom into your skin,
causing greater irritation.
Most people have only local reactions to
wasp and bee stings, although a few may experience more serious allergic
reactions. Local, non-allergic reactions range from burning, itching, redness,
and tenderness to massive swelling and itching that may last up to a week. These
local reactions can be treated with ice, vinegar, honey, meat tenderiser, or
commercial topical ointment to relieve the itching. An allergic reaction may
include hives or rash, swelling away from the sting site, headache, minor
respiratory symptoms, and stomach upset. These allergic reactions are not
life-threatening and can be readily treated with an antihistamine.
Very
rarely, a person may suffer a life-threatening, systemic allergic reaction to a
bee or wasp sting, which can cause anaphylactic shock (fainting, difficulty
breathing, swelling, and blockage in the throat) within minutes of being stung.
These systemic symptoms are cause for immediate medical attention. People with
known systemic allergic reactions to bee or wasp stings should consult with
their physician. The venoms of bees and wasps are different, so having a severe
reaction to a wasp sting does not mean a person will have the same reaction to a
bee sting.
Control of Nests The first step in wasp or bee
control is to correctly identify the insect and locate its nesting site. An
experienced pest control service may provide wasp or bee control service or you
can use the following information to attempt to control them yourself.
Wasps The best time of the year to control wasps is in
September/October after the queen has established her colony and while the
colony is still small. But because nests are small, they are also harder to
find. The best time of the day to control wasp nests is at night, when they are
less active. At temperatures below 5° C, wasps have difficulty flying. Never
seal a wasp nest until you are sure there are no surviving wasps inside. If a
nest is not discovered until Autumn, control may be unnecessary as imminent
freezing temperatures will kill the colony.
Exposed wasp nests
Wasp nests that are visible but are not near your home or areas of human
activity do not need to be treated. If they are not disturbed, the wasps won't
bother you.
Nests that are near human activity can pose a potential
problem. If there is a concern about stings, you should eradicate the nest.
Mechanical control without insecticides is possible for small, exposed
nests. At night, cover the nest with a large, heavy, plastic bag and seal it
shut. Cut the nest from the tree and freeze it or let the bag sit in the sun,
which will kill the wasps inside in a day or two. Use caution: there is more
risk involved in this procedure than in spraying the nest.
Ground
wasp nests When yellow-jackets or European wasps are found nesting in
the ground, first try pouring a soap and water solution into the entrance. Many
types of soap will work, including detergent and laundry soap.
If that
doesn't work, apply an insecticide into the nest opening. Be sure you use a
product that is cleared for use in lawns or soil. Dusts are more effective than
liquid insecticides because liquids do not always reach the nest. After you are
sure all the wasps have been exterminated, cover the nest entrance with soil.
When treating ground-dwelling wasp nests, use one of the following
insecticides: Permethrin (e.g. Coopex) as a dust
Concealed wasp nests The most challenging nests to control are
those that are concealed in voids behind walls or in roof voids. Often, the only
evidence of the nest is wasps flying back and forth through a crack or hole in
the home. In this circumstance you will need to call in a professional
firm.