Eee gads!

[JamesL]

Originally Posted by jennifer28

James I dont agree about the cicada wasp. They are only good for cicada control. But they are vicious. And they will take over a yard and RUIN it with their stupid dug out nests. They are especially bad if you have children who like to play in the yard. The loud voices and movement of kids will make them sting, and they do it fast and viciously. They are NOT harmless.

Jennifer, you have something other than a cicada wasp if it is actually delivering a sting. I would agree about the nests though. If they are in an area you don't care about leave them alone, otherwise just keep filling in the holes. They end up getting the message and move on.

Although cicada killers are large, female cicada killer wasps are not aggressive and rarely sting unless they are grasped roughly, stepped upon with bare feet, or caught in clothing, etc.
Males aggressively defend their perching areas on nesting sites against rival males but they have no sting.

[jennifer28]

JamesL

I stand corrected. Sorry I am so opinionated about wasps. I just dont like them. YOU are right about the cicada killers. My sister has a severe infestation of bald faced hornets, and also a few cicada killers that were nesting here and there in her stone wall by the driveway.

When the exterminator came I asked him about the cicada killers and he said the same thing you did as far as they were not the ones doing all the stinging, that it was these bald faced hornet things. Which are really gross. My sister has been stung over 5 times.

So I stand corrected (sorry about the misinformation) but I dont like wasps in general. They are mean and ugly and gross.

[BigBrownDogHouse]

Originally Posted by barkeater

Are you sure it wasn't a hummingbird moth?

Hi!

No, it wasn't one of those. I'm positive.

I know I joke around in a lot of my posts and I mentioned that it freaked me out but actually I am very calm around bees, wasps, hornets, etc.
I can work on a tomato plant while a giant bumble bee is buzzing the same plant and it won't bother me at all. My buddy the BumbleBee was almost moving plant by plant with me this morning in the garden.

Just came face to face with a wasp nest a few days ago too up on my roof, all was calm. It was a stare down with about 5 of them. I just slowly backed up.

Snakes are another story! Then I am a wimp!

I saw this cicada wasp when I was out on the front porch. He was just making a quick stop by a few potted plants I have out on our front patio. I actually moved towards him to get a closer look.
It was just wild seeing such a big, ugly thing like that.

Just good to find out what they are to warn the kids.

[lakelady]

I think mine are the European Hornets, although, the ones I saw were only in the early summer (haven't seen one since) and they were bigger than 1". In reading about them, the queens buzz about around that time looking to make new nests/hives.

I do have a nest of underground bees near my garden though which I should address. It seems I get new ones every year in different parts of the yard, usually areas I don't spend time in, but the garden is different. I saw the mound of dirt in the lawn there. I hate bees and flying things! (and spiders, and snakes, and rodents!)

[babice]

Yeah, BBDH. I'm with you. I work out in my garden amongst the many bumble bees and honey bees, etc. that I actually planted specific things to attract. We also have a good bit of wasps always flying around enjoying the bird bath and the fruit in the suet as well. I just work amongst them and we leave each other alone. But - this thing - holy wow. And, yes, I have lots of hummingbirds and dragonflies and it was so big when it flew by that I actually thought it could be one of those.

But - it landed on the stones on the outside of that flower bed and I got a good look at it. Aaaaah! Looked very much like that picture of the wood wasp I posted. I read those are harmless. Nevertheless....freaked me out at first. Never seen any bee nor wasp that big.

Funny side note - I DID somehow get some yellow pollen on my sleeve this morning. Don't know what I rubbed up against and I didn't even realize it was there - until - my friend Fred Bumble, who's always out there on his favorite russian sage, landed on my arm there to help me get rid of some of that pollen. Well - I admit that freaked me out and I proceeded to do a little dance around for a little while. Had to laugh at myself. I hope Fred was laughing too! I changed my shirt and Fred and I got back to our respective jobs.

p.s. no, the one I saw didn't look like that picture of the hummer moth - that one actually looks kinda pretty - it looked more like that picture of the wood wasp

[meadowyck]

barkeater those hummer moths are very cool for sure, when I lived up north had them all the time. They even sounded like the wings of humming birds.

[babice]

Originally Posted by meadowyck

barkeater those hummer moths are very cool for sure, when I lived up north had them all the time. They even sounded like the wings of humming birds.

Aren't the hummer moths what results from tomato hornworms? I'm not sure because (knock on major amounts of wood) - I haven't seen either of those.

[Darren Abbey]

I grew up with the cicada killer wasps and never heard of anyone ever getting stung. Everything I can find on them (ex: http://insects.tamu.edu/fieldguide/cimg331.html) suggests this is the general experience with them.

Cicada killer wasps are solitary nesters, though they may nest in large numbers in the same areas. It is not in the best interest of these wasps to go and aggressively sting intruders, as this is a group defense behavior. They are known to sting when handled roughly or stepped on, which is more consistent with a self-defense model.

Jennifer28 : The wasp behavior you're describing is consistent with the Eastern yellow jacket, which are extremely aggressive about defending their group's territory.

[kath]

Originally Posted by babice

Aren't the hummer moths what results from tomato hornworms? I'm not sure because (knock on major amounts of wood) - I haven't seen either of those.

Yup, the adult form of hornworms are hummingbird moths- it made me look at them differently after I learned this.

kath

[tjg911]

yellow jackets are very aggressive and will attack en mass if disturbed or attacked by someone foolish enough the mess with them


BUT


they are tame compared to bald faced hornets! no one should ever mess with bald faced hornets. they are extremely aggressive and attack viciously.

2 summers ago i had a small nest under the deck but i did not know it was there. i was standing above it and there was no problem until....

i was getting rid of the skins from a jar of almonds. i dumped a handful of almonds into my hand and blew the lose skins away. when this was done i slowly dumped them back into the glass jar. THEN ALL H-E-L-L BROKE LOSE! apparently the high pitch of the almonds hitting the glass irritated the bald faced hornets and they came to see me. these were tiny (early june) by august they would be 3/4" to 1" long. they were so small i literally couldn't see them but i knew something was flying around me. i was stung 3 times on the face within seconds and each felt like something hit me like a burning board. i realized i was being attacked by something i couldn't see and ran for the door and got inside.

i am not allergic to stinging insects, i've been stung by honeybees, bumblebees and several times by myriad yellow jackets (it sucks when they get stuck in your socks and just keep stinging repeatedly!) but never like this. within a few minutes i was having trouble seeing, withing 5 minutes my right eye was swollen shut, this was the most dangerous sting as it was an inch from my eye. the other 2 sites were swelling badly, one was near my mouth and i could feel the distortion in my face. in 30 minutes i was really wondering just how much worse this would get and by 40 minutes i was considering whether i should seek emergency medical help but since all this didn't occur in the 1st few minutes i figured i wouldn't die. i called the doctor and was told to get benedryl and something else that helped after a day but the swelling took a few days to really go away and not hurt. the exterminator sprayed the nest the next day and they were tiny, no wonder i could see them. they were maybe 3/16" long but come august....

the year before in august i had a nest removed from a north side overhang 20' off the ground. i would ride the lawn tractor under it all summer completely unaware of the danger above but they were high enough they did not feel i was a problem. i did not know it was there until one early morning i was on the screened in porch right under the nest and noticed the loud buzzing and i could see a lot of activity but i didn't know what it was until i went out and looked. the exterminator said he never saw a nest so big in 20 years, it was about 2' wide and almost 3' long. they sprayed it 2 different days to get them all as some remained after the initial spraying. there were still a few that would arrive but the nest was pulled down the 2nd day.

you never want to mess with these devils!

https://www.google.com/search?q=bald...w=1183&bih=692

[Wi-sunflower]

For all you hornet / wasp haters out there, me included, you might get a kick out of this youtube vid of the army using a flame thrower to get rid of a nest. it's in Chinese tho.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_Bo2ro60ro

Carol

[babice]

Originally Posted by tjg911

you never want to mess with these devils!

https://www.google.com/search?q=bald...w=1183&bih=692

OMG. I have seen some of these bald-faced ones. Not lately but earlier in the season. Now you're freaking me out! We certainly have a lot of yellow jackets but I've just been taking the live and let live mode with them. Oiy.

[BigBrownDogHouse]

Originally Posted by babice

Yeah, BBDH. I'm with you. I work out in my garden amongst the many bumble bees and honey bees, etc. that I actually planted specific things to attract. We also have a good bit of wasps always flying around enjoying the bird bath and the fruit in the suet as well. I just work amongst them and we leave each other alone. But - this thing - holy wow. And, yes, I have lots of hummingbirds and dragonflies and it was so big when it flew by that I actually thought it could be one of those.

I've never had a summer with so many wasps. I deal with the yellow jackets everytime I step out and I am the type that goes in and out all day long.
They love the front bird bath. It started out with a few but it increased steadily to the point there would easily be 20 at a time on the thing.

I have found their nests everywhere. Behind shudders, some creeping behind siding, around windows and I have followed some back to neighbor's houses.

I put out the traps a few weeks ago to cut down the population. Some might say that if they weren't bothering me, why put out the traps?
My girls have their friends over all the time and I didn't want anything to happen.
I've also seen more weird looking wasps this year than ever before too.
I don't think I am in the range of the bald face hornet but my traps are filled up with ones that look awfully close to them. Lot of dark ones with those white markings on their back end.

When I came face to face with a cone the other day, I had climbed out my window upstairs to check some stuff on the side roof. Unfortunately, that was my only way back in the house from up there. About five were lined up on the upper window facing staring me down. Even once inside the house with the screen back down, they were still watching me.

The yellow jackets are just everywhere.....then there are these larger version also....like yellow jackets on steroids.

I'm fine with them until they seem to be out of control like this year. You can't step outside without seeing one almost immediately.

I know where a Bumble Bee hole is in back, right in the corner of the garden, and they just do their thing and stick to themselves.

The others always seem to have to buzz you.

I like my buzz from beer!

Brian

[babice]

Those B&W ones are freaking me out now. I hope they're not the bald faced ones. ick. I know my neighbor had a wasps nest in her BBQ Grill last weekend. The guy who cuts her lawn sprayed them with wasp spray for her.

Speaking of creepy, crawlies...something else I'm seeing this year that I haven't seen out there before. Wolf spiders. ICK. I saw a very large one last weekend and she was rolling around her white ball of eggs. She and I definitely had a stare down. She totally creeped me out but I have to admit I was impressed with how agile she was with that ball of eggs of hers.

I saw another wolf spider today. It came out from under one of my EBs and was watching me. Guess it decided I was okay cuz it ducked back under there after about 5 minutes of watching me.

Ick, ick, ick.

[meadowyck]

I found this link, so I don't know what to think now about these hummer moths.

http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/insect/05517.html