Wasp Question

[Muggsy]

Its been a busy year for wasps on this farm. Many many nests but, there have been 3 that I would describe as being "hot"

One in some old hay bales in the open, the badgers had this one out more than once, but they still carried on.

Another is down a space between round straw bales stacked on end 4 high and in a dutch barn.

The third and "hottest" in a disused building. A few weeks ago there were absolutely thousands of wasps working this one.

They dont bother me, I like to see them catching flies off the cows, its a great sight, but even I would not enter the building, they were very protective of "thier shed"

Anyway, after the frosts this week, I decided to take a look in the building as I need to take something down from the wall.
There was no sign of activity at all. There were a couple of dead wasps about but.
I quietly, very quietly, removed the item I wanted and crept out.

Today its dark, overcast and very cold, I decided to retrieve the brand new football that the kids had lost down the very gap between the round bales that the wasps occupied in the barn.
I was a bit careful as I climbed the bales, just in case, wouldn't be a good place to attempt an escape from angry wasps, well there were a few still entering and leaving.

The question, will they all die in the winter ? probably be safer to buy another football

[aeshna5]

All the workers + the old queen will die off soon if they haven't already. The new queens will overwinter somewhere that is hopefully protected from the worst of the elements. This won't be in the old nest, but quite possibly some may find a secure niche in your shed, but they will be in a state of torpor as temperature is low, so should be safe to retrieve the ball.

The new queens will become active in the first warm spring days. Sometimes they may stir on very mild winter days, but these often then perish as they use up valuable fat reserves.

I like your enlightened attitude to these much maligned insects- sounds like your cattle approve too!

[paulchandler6]

You have a refreshing attitude to an insect that most people will kill at the drop of a hat. Except of course most people on WAB.

Paul

[clicka15]

I'd like to ditto the previous comments about your attitude to wasps. It's a breath of fresh air!

People see them as pests and kill them without thinking about it. They are fascinating and are not indiscriminate stingers as many believe. They are one of the best controls for other flying insects - many of which would be pests if it wasn't for the humble wasp.

The only complaint I have about wasps is the way the ichneumon (parasitic) wasps lay eggs in moth and other larvae. But I'm biased toward moths and butterflies, so I would say that, and others may disagree anyway!

[Wild-Woman]

We have had a wasp nest this year, behind facia board into the bathroom ceiling cavity.
They were very busy at one point and only a few decided to pay a visit in the house and these were fairly easy to catch by the old glass and paper trick and release.
The noticeable thing was the lack of flies that come in and whizz around the room, so I suspect the wasps were doing likewise here and keeping the population in check.

So long as they're not disturbed and folks aren't careless, they are a natural and essential part of our eco-system.
Ours have died off, there's no damage and all is quiet.

[Muggsy]

theres a challenge for next summer, to photograph a wasp in the act of catching a fly off the hide of a cow

Its great, I imagine the music to "Airwolf" watching them hugging the contours of the cows body without actually touching it.
Funny enough, the cattle know they mean no harm to them and never even blink at their presence.
Its fascinating on a warm but breezy day, they sieze the fly, often quite big ones, and as the wasp heads off the weight of the fly drags them towards the floor before it "fires the afterburners" to regain hieght.
Same thing happens at the nest site if its exposed, they overshoot the runway