Learn About Wasp Control

Wasps Can Be A Problem In Sussex. Learn More About Wasps And How To Control A Wasp Problem.

Learn More About Wasp Problems In Brighton

Wasps can be regarded as generally useful insect, helping to control other pests and cleaning up dead insect carcasses. Wasps can even act as pollinators, but in general they are regarded as nuisance pests and a threat to health. Many people have a genuine phobia against them in some cases, with good reason.

The sting is the object of our fear of Wasps. Wasp stings may be unpleasant to most of us, but to some they can prove fatal. If allergic to the stinging insect’s venom, these people might develop an allergic reaction, which may range from mild to life threatening. Death from wasp stings is rapid, when compared to death from snake venom; 66% of susceptible victims die within one hour of being stung by a wasp. On average four Bee or Wasp sting deaths are reported per year in the UK.

People prone to severe reactions form wasp stings should carry emergency medication on them and this includes an Epipen or Anapen Adrenaline injector, Antihistamine medication and Prednisilone. Medical advice suggests that people prone to an allergic reaction should have 2 Epipens, one at home and the other in the workplace or school. All wasp and bee allergic people should have a Medic Alert bracelet carrying details of their allergy.

Get To Know The Wasp And Why They Are A Pest

Although eleven species of true wasp are found in Europe only two, the Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris) and German Wasp (Vespula germanica), are important as pest species and increasing examples of the genus Dolichovespular are being encountered across Sussex; with the first recorded colony found in Brighton in the 1980’s. All these wasps overwinter as queens, the Common Wasp usually hibernating in buildings or under ground, the German wasp typically in tree cavities and Dolichovespula is normally found well way from buildings.

The young queen emerges in spring, feeding on nectar and sap and begins to construct her new nest from wasp paper, a mixture she concocts from chewed wood, plant debris and saliva. Favourite places for nests are in the ground, hollow trees, eaves, attics or garden sheds.

Her first batch of eggs is produced within a few days and the larvae develop within the nest. The mature larvae constructs silken cocoons in which they opiate, still within the cells of the wasp nest. Four to six weeks later, the first generation of workers emerge. They are smaller than the queen and all female wasps – male wasp emerge later in the season.

The workers then take over the nest construction, enveloping the whole nest in wasp paper, which could by now extend to eight tires. The also forage for food, ventilate the nest (by vibrating their wings) and nurture an developing wasp larvae.

The queen now spends all her time egg lying, each cell being used numerous times to rear larvae, by the end of the summer, a nest may house over 20,000 wasps.

With the onset of autumn, new males emerge to fertilise new queens who go on to search for hibernation sites, During the winter months the old queen and workers die and the nest will not be re used.

Population Levels

The amount of wasps in the late summer/autumn depends on two things.

  1. The number of females overwintering
  2. The weather in April/May when the queens are trying to set up the colony.

A bad spring will mean that many nests are destroyed so fewer wasps are produced.

A large number of females overwintering will mean more competition for nest sites etc. in spring so the surviving queens will be in poorer condition and therefore fewer offspring will be produced.

he best conditions for numbers are therefore a dry spring and fewer overwintering females. The colonies will then be successful, producing many offspring and many overwintering females.

The following year, however, should see lower numbers because of the competition from many overwintering females hence the good and bad years for wasps that we observe.

How To Control Your Wasp Problem

Despite a higher mortality rate, the need to control wasps is more and more obvious, especially as the number of infestations appears to be increasing. Requests for control come from two sectors, domestic and commercial, and of course, the most pressing time is in the summer months when nests are at their largest. Historically, there have been seven principle ways to apply wasp control:

The surest way to treat wasps is by destroying the nest. Finding the nest can be a problem in itself, although the client may well know its location. If not, a food source can be left as bait for foraging wasps who can then be followed back to the nests, if the nest is close to the food source.

Treatment Of Wasp Problems

Ideally, nests should be treated early or late in the day when wasp activity at a minimum and the nest is likely to contain a higher population. The application of an insecticidal dust in and around the entrance of the nest with a gaspot or a dust applicator is efficient treatment and returning workers will carry dust further into the nest.

Alternatively, a labelled water dispensable powder or liquid insecticide can be applied with a pneumatic sprayer fitted with a pinstream nozzle. Their residual activities can extend to many weeks in dry conditions and the product will not taint even the most sensitive foodstuffs.

When applying liquid insecticides, the nest entrance should be soaked first, along with the area immediately around it followed by application into the nest. Appropriate personal protection equipment should be worn and people kept away during the insecticidal application.

For convenience a wasp nest destroyer aerosol is available allowing one-handed operation and using a far reaching accurate jet. This method is ideal when treating nests in restricted areas such as roof spaces or when the use of ladders is necessary.

Download Your Whitepaper To Learn More About Removing A Wasp Problem.

To continue learning about wasps and how to deal with problems, you can download this pdf for 6 things you need to learn about wasps and spotting a wasp problem. (pdf 134kb)

Reference: Wasps – work study booklet (Killgrem training)