ID Wasp/Bee nest please

[pugwashuk]

Found this hanging in my shed its about the size of a golf ball,can anyone tell me what made this please?.

[Beekeeper]

Its a wasp nest, maybe the European version of our native wasp, if it is, they are more aggressive and any disturbance at all will cause them to attack.

I will say though that i am not at all certain of the species as the structure of the nest does not look quite right for a normal wasp nest, hopefully someone else will be able to identify accurately for you.

Ian

[Dogghound]

Originally Posted by Beekeeper

they are more aggressive and any disturbance at all will cause them to attack.

This is simply not true. Of our native species in Britain only Vespula vulgaris and V.germanica are particularly aggressive and even so are still unlikely to attack unless you pose a threat to their nest.

This is the beginning of a vespid nest not sure which species, it may have failed. You would expect it to be considerably larger at this time of year. Even if it was active the numbers present would pose little threat.

[pugwashuk]

Thanks very much for your response guys, would more photos help?.

[shenk1]

I think if wasps were using it you would have seen them.I've got one being built in a nest box in the corner of the garden where the washing line is and the wasps are always busy building layers or fetching food.We ignore the wasps and the wasps have ignored us so we are just letting them get on with life
The missus loves watching them as she puts out the washing

[Dogghound]

See if there are any dead wasps in it and photo them if you can.

[eucera]

Originally Posted by Beekeeper

It's a wasp nest, maybe the European version of our native wasp,

I am not at all sure I know what this means! We have 9 species of Vespid wasps in UK (10 if you include Polistes).

7 of these species have been long term residents and 2 others are relatively recent (natural) colonists. All our UK species are known from the near continent, and the only one that is clearly different from what is found in Europe is the Hornet, where we have a different subspecies.

[Beekeeper]

Originally Posted by Dogghound

This is simply not true. Of our native species in Britain only Vespula vulgaris and V.germanica are particularly aggressive and even so are still unlikely to attack unless you pose a threat to their nest.

This is the beginning of a vespid nest not sure which species, it may have failed. You would expect it to be considerably larger at this time of year. Even if it was active the numbers present would pose little threat.

Please note doghound that i did say in that post "disturbance",
I have had experiences of these euro wasps attacking enmasse when i was clearing foliage from around their nests prior to removing, far worse than out own long established wasp.

eucera, i do not know the Latin name for the ones i'm referring to, the things that makes them stand out generally are their colour which is darker that our usual wasps and also their nest is almost always perfectly round like a football, whereas with our own wasps the nest can be any shape.

They arrived here a few years ago, probably no more than ten.

Ian

[healfdan]

Beekeeper
To back up what you have said.
I was assisting an experienced pest control operator about five years ago on Wimbledon Common, where a wasp nest was causing problems with golfers. Having attempted to deal with the nest he was attacked very aggresively by what he referred to as Europen wasps. Fortunately he was wearing a bee keepers veil but even then he sustained a few stings before making it back to my jeep. The wasps attacked the vehicle relentlessly forcing us to back off.
Text books are no substitute for real life experiences.
Healfdan

[Dogghound]

I stated they will attack if you pose a threat to their nest i.e a pest controller. But there is mass hysteria whenever someone sees a wasp or its nest in most cases they are harmless and do not attack. You could happily co-exist with a nest in your garden for example.