A picture is worth a thousand words. Visit the photo gallery at PestWeb to help you identify the nest or pest.

In brief, the venom is used for sting-allergic patients. They are given small amounts of the venom to build immunity to its effects. For more information see the article I wrote on this.

No. Only honeybees and bumblebees make honey. Honeybees make lots of honey. Bumblebees make honey but it is only very limited. Yellow jackets and hornets do not make honey.

German and common queen wasps usually choose a warm spot, often in a bank with a sunny aspect, but also in attics, house roofs, eaves, or walls in which to build their nests. Paper wasp queens build nests that hang from small shrubs and trees, stalks of vegetation, fences and walls, and often under the eaves of houses.

I estimate it takes 6,960 yellow jackets and 4,640 white-faced hornets to make a pound. I base this on the calculation that it takes 15 yellow jackets to make up a gram. There are 464 grams in a pound. I’d say it takes 10 white-faced hornets to make a gram. It probably takes 8-10 average size yellow jacket nests to make a pound here in Connecticut. Once in a while we have come across a nest that has given us half a pound but that is very rare.

If you encounter hornets, wasps or bees, do not swat at them. Retreat at least about 20m. If not possible, hide in vehicle or any enclosure or lie face down & cover head with arms. If you spot their nests, DO NOT disturb or approach the nests; call us at 67941401 (8:30 am ? 6:00 pm) or 64880252 (outside office hours), or inform the rangers at our parks. Wear long-sleeved light coloured clothing if possible when outdoors.

Yes. Epenephrine or adrenaline is usually effective at suppressing the allergic reaction immediately, although severe reactions may require a second dose. Later in the process, you may need an antihistamine like Benadryl (the over-the-counter preparation may not be strong enough). Your medical professional can help you in evaluating your need for this and obtaining it.

Bright colours are a sign of danger. Many species that are venomous, like snakes, spiders and wasps, are brightly coloured, and this colouring warns potential predators that they are dangerous. A predator, that attacks a wasp and is stung will link pain associated with a sting with the yellow/ black colouration and avoid animals with this colouration in future. Different colours are produced by the differential absorption and reflection of light.

Use a pyrethroid for a quick knockdown spray. Use a drench of Sevin for long term control of nest. For more information see local news article

No. To rid an area of wasps or hornets, you need to locate & destroy the nest. We recommend using our Wasp & Hornet spray.

It is a policy of the City of Toronto, Urban Forestry to leave wasp nests in trees where possible given the benefits of many wasp species as a natural control agent for other insect pests. If staff safety is not jeopardized, City of Toronto Urban Forestry will spray the nests of bees, wasps and hornets in trees which are situated on, or overhang City property (road allowance and parkland) if the nest is deemed to be a safety concern to the public.

Ignore if possible. Nest are abandoned in late fall and are not used again. Use a pyrethroid knockdown spray. Direct it into the nest opening. If you spray after dark the hornets will not see you. Also, they are all in the nest so they can't sneak up behind you.For more information see local newsarticle.

There are thousands of species of Vespoid (true) wasps, the actual number is not known. We do know that there is about 800 species of social wasps.

average common or German wasp nest produces between 11 000 and 13 000 workers and from 1000 to 2000 queens a season. Paper wasp nests, which are much smaller than common or German wasp nests, contain up to 200 wasps.

Wasps eat a wide range of invertebrates including spiders, caterpillars, ants, bees, and flies. It has also been suggested that wasps may prey on nestling birds. Wasps also collect honeydew. Honeydew is produced by a native scale insect. The insect inserts its mouth-parts into the trunk of the beech tree to siphon the sap. The excess sap, modified by the scale insect, forms a sugary droplet at the end of a waxy anal filament.

Chitin. Wings are platelike extensions of the integument (outer skeleton), strengthened by a framework of hollow chitinous tubes known as veins.

Virtually any contact between two wasps can be considered a form of communication. Visual and audible signs are used to attract the opposite sex for mating, and size and posture displays are used in courtship or aggression. Exchanges of food and chemical stimuli (pheromones) among the members of a colony are also very important in maintaining the social hierarchy and tasking of the colony members.

Queens wasps are bigger because they have to produce and store large quantities of eggs. Being bigger also means that they can store more fat, which is essential if they are to survive winter hibernation — by the time queens leave the colony, fat reserves account for nearly 40% o their total dried weight. The differences in size result primarily from variations in quantity and quality of food received during the larval stage — queens receive almost twice as much food as workers.