# Yellow jackets somewhere between light nuisance and menace. Effective controls???



## Boondocks (Sep 16, 2020)

joebeewhisperer said:


> I think that just about covers it. I was setting out some cappings last night and took 3-4 yellow jacket stings to my fingers before it was over. Ended up with a honeybee sting to the end of nose and under eye with almost zero swelling. But the pesky yellow jacket stings swelled my fingers to painful proportions.
> 
> Our field is grown up and I intend to mow some paths through it in the next couple of weeks, if for no other reason to make it easier to find yellow jacket nests. What methods to you use to trap (with minimal bees) or find nests? Thanks


I use something similar to this. I put out three traps and caught yellowjackets, bald face hornets, wasps, and wax moths for two months. I think I saw a few hive beetles in them too. You have to renew them every couple of weeks since they fill up with bugs and the scent fades. I also used apple chunks and it worked well also. The vinegar will keep the bees out of them. I didn't have one bee in them. 








How to Make a Yellow Jacket Trap in 3 Simple Steps


Don't forget to bring this on your next picnic.




www.goodhousekeeping.com


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## GFWestTexas (Jul 10, 2021)

I am going to make some up and take it to the lake house, they are bad up there. However as far as in the bee yards, I keep my grass fairly well scalped in at least a 100’ circumference and everything else cut down as well. I can deal with the wasp, it’s those rattle snakes that worry me around here.😳 Are you dealing with above ground, below ground nest Joe?


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## Newbeek2021 (May 13, 2021)

2 liter soda bottle, cut top off, flip it around & shove inside itself, toss a piece of lunchmeat inside for bait


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## GFWestTexas (Jul 10, 2021)

If your dealing with underground nest, first thing is you have to get the area cleared, mark them, wait until night to spray them they should all be at the nest and much easier to treat. This might come in handy;


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## joebeewhisperer (May 13, 2020)

Boondocks said:


> The vinegar will keep the bees out of them. I didn't have one bee in them.


Nice. Thanks! 


Newbeek2021 said:


> 2 liter soda bottle, cut top off, flip it around & shove inside itself, toss a piece of lunchmeat inside for bait


Thanks, I've done something similar once before but used a dark funnel and it didn't work too well. At the time I thought it would have gone better with something clear. 2-liter, sounds about right. 


GFWestTexas said:


> , it’s those rattle snakes that worry me around here.😳 Are you dealing with above ground, below ground nest Joe?


About 95% of nests are below ground. I remember when I was very young there was a nest in our yard. I poured about 1/2 cup of gas in it and lit it. My Dad walked away shaking his head. He told me it was the fumes that kill them, and I had just lit the fumes. As the nest is usually in a side cavity I had done nothing to them. The next day proved him to be correct as they were back at it. That time a small amount of gas did the trick. 

Rattle snakes are very rare where we live (and common 15 miles away), but copperheads are plentiful if you know where to look. The outside cats and chickens keep them beaten back pretty good. As far as keeping it clipped, my primary forage is a 5-6 acre field, so I'm only mowing a bit at a time. Makes a good excuse anyway.  My bees are lucky if they don't have to chew down the grass to get in the front door. I weed-eat 4-5x a year and it's definitely due one.


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## GFWestTexas (Jul 10, 2021)

Yeah, I am thankful most of our nest are above ground, I have seen them use gas, dry ice to treat the under ground nest, I posted something that might prove useful in my previous post when I edited. I thought it worked pretty well for him, and don’t think you would get to many bees.


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## Tumbleweed (Mar 17, 2021)

I use the traps previously mentioned, but with a couple of these in my back pockets for a full measure of revenge.









Electronic Fly & Insect Swatter


Amazing deals on this Electronic Fly & Insect Swatter at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.




www.harborfreight.com


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## Heinlein (Aug 28, 2018)

Put out traps early next spring to catch the yellow jacket queens.


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## ankklackning (Dec 10, 2020)

Newbeek2021 said:


> 2 liter soda bottle, cut top off, flip it around & shove inside itself, toss a piece of lunchmeat inside for bait


I'd heard about doing this. And even tried it. But are you suggesting meat only with no sugar water? And does it work better that way? (I'd only heard of having sugar water in it. But I'm interested if there's a new way!)


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## ankklackning (Dec 10, 2020)

I killed probably at least 15 of these today just mashing them as they'd approach the feeder. But where I slay 1, another 2 will be in their place tomorrow, I expect. They seem to breed pretty fast. It would be interesting to compare and know the # of days for their eggs to hatch compared to # of days for honey bees to hatch.


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## Newbeek2021 (May 13, 2021)

Just meat of some kind, theyll go after the meat smell, dont use sugar water else youll get some of your bees in it


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## KevinWI (Mar 18, 2018)

Rescue yellow jacket trap.....it works....I've tried the "homemade" versions....they suck....


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## jwcarlson (Feb 14, 2014)

Newbeek2021 said:


> 2 liter soda bottle, cut top off, flip it around & shove inside itself, toss a piece of lunchmeat inside for bait


And they don't eat much, so you can always make a sandwich after the trap is full.


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## Newbeek2021 (May 13, 2021)

😂
+1 for sammiches!


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## joebeewhisperer (May 13, 2020)

jwcarlson said:


> And they don't eat much, so you can always make a sandwich after the trap is full.





Newbeek2021 said:


> 😂
> +1 for sammiches!


Now we are getting somewhere. A yellow jacket and questionable lunch-meat sandwich. 



KevinWI said:


> Rescue yellow jacket trap.....it works....I've tried the "homemade" versions....they suck....


I broke down and bought 1 disposable and 2 refillables at Home Depot today. I'm generally trying to occasionally open-feed a bunch of hives without raising a billion yellow jackets. Went out after an hour and had 8-10 of what looked like queens (or severely gorged) yellow jackets, zero honey bees despite several thousand flying within 20-30' from the trap. I'll update again as this progresses.


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## elmer_fud (Apr 21, 2018)

joebeewhisperer said:


> I broke down and bought 1 disposable and 2 refillables at Home Depot today. I'm generally trying to occasionally open-feed a bunch of hives without raising a billion yellow jackets. Went out after an hour and had 8-10 of what looked like queens (or severely gorged) yellow jackets, zero honey bees despite several thousand flying within 20-30' from the trap. I'll update again as this progresses.


It sounds like you still have a flow going on if the bees are ignoring it. The bees prefer flowers over sugar and honey when they have a choice. 

I have found that a blow torch is very effective for taking yellow jackets/wasps when they land somewhere and collect like that. It is also a very effective way to take out above ground nests (when they are somewhere fire resistant)


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## ursa_minor (Feb 13, 2020)

I tried the homemade traps with juice and meat, they did not do very well. We have yellow jacket heaven here right now and the latest nest was in the bumper of a work truck that hadn't moved for a month. I have a huge nest about 15 feet from my apiary, it is under an old wooden box. I have been wondering how to deal with it for a month, I am afraid to spray so close to my bees, and the traps don't seem to get enough of them. They are getting more and more aggressive as the season progresses. 

Today I took a huge sheet of clear plastic film, left over from my greenhouse, suited up and covered the entire hive. I put some boards around the bottom to weigh it down. I know they will still probably find a new way in and out thru a small fold in the plastic, but I am hoping that the high heat created from the sun cooks the little buggers. My greenhouse can get upwards of 50C, if I don't properly vent, so I am hoping that this at least kills the developing larva.


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## ursa_minor (Feb 13, 2020)

Well,I headed out to look at my 'fix me up' and the amount of moisture under the plastic is astounding, the sun is out and temps. are rising. Because of the way the box is built, with a peaked metal top, many yellow jackets are coming out of the hive and have gone to the top of the peak under the plastic and desperate to get out, the forager wasps are on the outside trying to get in. 

I repeated this set up with a nest under some pails in a small open trailer and I made sure to prop a pipe under the plastic to create a peak. I hope this works, at least to some degree. I could be off on the wrong track but it is the only thing I could think of to get them all without spray. 

Tonight when they are hopefully settled down a little, I am going to secure the plastic better so come morning they cannot find a way out. They are a little to angry right now, I can handle bees that are that annoyed but not these wasps. I have a feeling their stinger might be a little longer than the bees and could penetrate my suit.


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## joebeewhisperer (May 13, 2020)

ursa_minor said:


> I could be off on the wrong track but it is the only thing I could think of to get them all without spray.


I'm going to suggest something from my earlier post. 


joebeewhisperer said:


> About 95% of nests are below ground. I remember when I was very young there was a nest in our yard. I poured about 1/2 cup of gas in it and lit it. My Dad walked away shaking his head. He told me it was the fumes that kill them, and I had just lit the fumes. As the nest is usually in a side cavity I had done nothing to them. The next day proved him to be correct as they were back at it. That time a small amount of gas did the trick.


About a cup of gasoline will usually fume out an underground (or confined) nest. Diesel will work as well, and neither will harm above-ground honeybees. Do I like pouring any petrol on the ground, no. Do I like it better than some insecticide, you bet.


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## ursa_minor (Feb 13, 2020)

thanks joebeewhipere, but not one of the yellow jacket nests is underground, in our area they are close to the ground, so close that the top of the nest is actually above ground and looks like a rock. In those scenarios I can use diesel, no match though, the fire risk is thru the roof. But where I am finding the hives these days is inside or underneath enclosures. One under the truck bumper, one inside a small trailer work box, one under a tire, one under a box, one inside a metal tool box, one under a pallet, one under a tonka truck, one inside a barrel and on and on. I guess some of these could be yellow and black hornets but either way, they are very hard to access. I am tired of them.


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## joebeewhisperer (May 13, 2020)

ursa_minor said:


> ... I am tired of them.


Word. I have 3 EZ Nucs with sugar frames in them close to the yard. I knew honeybees couldn't get in them if they were closed up and I thought yellow jackets couldn't. At this point several hundred feed there each day finding their way in and out. I have a large tote with soapy water and now and again I drown a few hundred. I leave it there primarily to buy time until I can search our field for nests. They are not really bothering the hives like they would be if they didn't have another food option. But I'm still raising them. argh.


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## bushpilot (May 14, 2017)

I use the Rescue traps, with the attractant in the spring and early summer, and add cheap lunch meat late summer and fall. I get them out early spring, before I see any yellowjackets, and leave them out until I catch no more in the fall.

Currently I have about a dozen out, will probably add a few more next year.

So far this works for my hives, the bees can keep them out and not be overrun. But the raspberries and strawberries still get looted by the yellowjackets, so I am going to up my game next year.


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## ursa_minor (Feb 13, 2020)

I am going to buy some traps as soon as I find some, even in the dead of winter, so I am prepared next spring. Supplies of anything has become sporadic at best, so if you don't grab what you need, regardless of season, you won't get it at all.


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## bushpilot (May 14, 2017)

ursa_minor said:


> I am going to buy some traps as soon as I find some, even in the dead of winter, so I am prepared next spring. Supplies of anything has become sporadic at best, so if you don't grab what you need, regardless of season, you won't get it at all.


Yeah, I will buy more in the winter, probably off of eBay.


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## joebeewhisperer (May 13, 2020)

EUREKA!!! I have some pics of a yellow jacket roundup. Details and pics to come.


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## joebeewhisperer (May 13, 2020)

This was minutes after installing. I’m finished with bee work and going to bed kids. More details to follow.


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## joebeewhisperer (May 13, 2020)

OK, so I had some EZ Nucs with frames of mostly capped sugar. My intention was/is to extract and just keep the comb. But alas, other bee work took precedence and these have been sitting near the yard for ~2 weeks. A week ago I filled a large Rubbermaid container with water, added soap and dipped the EZ Nucs in it. As time was short I removed the 3-4 frames in each and dipped the yellow jackets into the soapy water. 

Last night I had just finished charging the last round of mating nucs, stepped on a rusty nail (ironically from a 20yr-old bee hive box), and was about spent. It occurred to me that I should again dip the EZ Nucs and kill another round at least. Then a light bulb went off and I realized that my recent traps (which had killed maybe 200 yellow jackets in a week) had the perfect killing mechanism, but the lure was not competing with so many sources of sugar. 

So I popped out the feeder hole in the EZ Nuc tops and hastily duct-taped the traps on top (removing the bottom of trap). I can't say what the long term effect will be but I propose the following:

1. EZ Nucs are designed to keep honeybees inside when completely closed, this also keeps them out. I have used them many times to store a few frames of honey when I needed to get it out of a hive but didn't have time to deal with it immediately. 

2. You could use an extracted "wet" frame, or your choice of irresistible bait. My view is that while they will take on lunch meat, and can deal with vinegar (which will turn off honeybees), sugar water or a bit of honey is much more effective. 

3. If you use frames of any kind for bait do not use frames with any pollen, as small hive beetles have no trouble getting in small places. I really think a bowl of sugar water, and maybe a smidge of honey would make an effective lure. 

I will continue to update. I think my biggest issue will be keeping the traps empty. Also bear in mind these particular yellow jackets (in the trap pics above) already knew the route to the EZ Nucs and had probably made multiple trips. I don't know if this will keep luring in new ones. Hoping this keeps numbers lower.


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## ankklackning (Dec 10, 2020)

The typical soda pop 2 liter bottle trap method mentioned above is nice. And I would encourage it.

I did find out a second way to trap them however. And I would try more than one method.

If you are using 5 gallon feeder buckets to feed them sugar syrup this can be exploited. Its quite interesting. Basically... 
'during the heat of the day the bees have their sway. During the night the yellowjackets are a blight...'

This means that in the heat of the day bees will control and have the feeder. But later in the day or very early it will be almost entirely yellow jackets and wasps, etc. This can be very easily exploited to kill off yellow jackets!

So if you're like me you put in the sugar syrup in the early morning. Then by late afternoon its mostly empty except for some dry residue on the sides of the bucket. At that point, somewhere between late afternoon and evening it will be completely full of yellow jackets, with zero bees in there! Its quite interesting to see! 

At this point all you have to do is put the lid on the bucket. Then switch out the bucket with something else. You can let the combination of heat and starvation kill them off. Just did this and got about 50 yellow jackets in there! I was quite surprised by how easy and effective this way is. You are just using the natural method of how the yellow jackets and wasps fly better at cooler hours of the day than bees. Plus the bees tend to get picked off by them during these kinds of hours also.

I also agree that these pests are a problem. I don't hate them as I see they do play a role in clean up. But I do routinely find them trying to sneak in hives. And if you accidentally leave a lid off a hive a few hours with yellow jacket nests near by you will come back and find the hive decimated by them. Its sad. 

Well this kind of trap exploiting, I'm hoping some of you get to try. It took me literally only about a minute to do. And with other buckets to swap in and take turns it can be done without also altering the buckets structure. I anticipate I'll be doing it this way often now.


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## ankklackning (Dec 10, 2020)

joebeewhisperer said:


> View attachment 64907
> 
> This was minutes after installing. I’m finished with bee work and going to bed kids. More details to follow.


That is astonishing! Really! So many! 

If you have that many in the yard, I wonder how your bees can even survive!


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## joebeewhisperer (May 13, 2020)

ankklackning said:


> You are just using the natural method of how the yellow jackets and wasps fly better at cooler hours of the day than bees.


In cooler weather if I'm open feeding I can kill off several yellow jackets before the bees are stirring. Right now it's so warm the bees start around daybreak, so the temp differential is hard to manage. Also, if I'm going to feed in a dearth I'm going to gorge them quickly a couple hours before dark in multiple feeders. If I put out feed that runs out in the heat of the day I'm risking a robbing situation. 


ankklackning said:


> If you have that many in the yard, I wonder how your bees can even survive!


There's a good many for sure. I sat one of these near some totes I use to feed the bees this evening. One was 2/3 full of yellow jackets in 20 minutes. Interestingly, the traps above filled up and then very few more came to the boxes. I figured these may have learned the route and once they were dead the overall numbers were significantly lower. The first frost will kill the workers, but that is probably 6-8 weeks away. I'll be pulling out stops as it's difficult to inspect a hive now without 2-3 yellow jackets landing on the combs within the first minute. 

Thanks for the bucket tip. Maybe between all of us we can eradicate them, at least within a short distance of our yards. Like you, I don't normally mind them if they are not hindering me. I once had hornets build a nest on my storage building. I tore it down twice, and even burned it. They built it back and I left it, .... respect. 👊👊✊


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## joebeewhisperer (May 13, 2020)

Another slight eureka moment. Made some traps by drilling holes in milk jugs.

__
http://instagr.am/p/CSx1TAUDBkO/


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## ursa_minor (Feb 13, 2020)

I checked on my plastic wrapped wasp/hornet nests and after the last two days of 35C they are toast, lots of dead ones under the plastic and nada for noise when I bang the box. This certainly won't work in most situations, but if the nests are in areas that can be covered and the plastic secured so they cannot exit, it certainly does.


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## mgolden (Oct 26, 2011)

joebeewhisperer said:


> Another slight eureka moment. Made some traps by drilling holes in milk jugs.
> 
> __
> http://instagr.am/p/CSx1TAUDBkO/


Are those ??1/4 inch holes?


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## joebeewhisperer (May 13, 2020)

mgolden said:


> Are those ??1/4 inch holes?


13/64 drill bit. I didn’t play around too much with it. With this size a queen yellow jacket can’t go through it (con), but neither can a honeybee (pro). So I’m only catching worker yellow jackets, but they seem very prone to go inside. Mind you the area where I shot that video is near where I had feed before so tons of YJs know where it is. So far they go in and eventually die. I haven’t seen a single one coming out. I will note that white milk jugs seem to do better. I have one stained with well water they seem a bit less excited about and another yellow milk jug with very few in it.


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## Akovia (Aug 3, 2020)

joebeewhisperer said:


> I'm going to suggest something from my earlier post.
> 
> About a cup of gasoline will usually fume out an underground (or confined) nest. Diesel will work as well, and neither will harm above-ground honeybees. Do I like pouring any petrol on the ground, no. Do I like it better than some insecticide, you bet.


Back in my logging days I used 1/2 cup of gasoline poured down the hole. Wait about a smokes worth of minutes and push the butt in the hole. WHOOSH! A concussive explosion, no flame, killed the colony every time.


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## 123456789 (May 24, 2009)

I have found and dug up 5 nest just this week.


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## joebeewhisperer (May 13, 2020)

Started doing battle with yellow jackets today. Looked back to see last year's info and figured it would be good to revive this as I can't be the only one with YJ issues.


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## Nicksotherhoney (Jun 10, 2017)

Gonna start my battle early next week. I might try the soda can Borax apple juice method


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## grozzie2 (Jun 3, 2011)

Nicksotherhoney said:


> Gonna start my battle early next week. I might try the soda can Borax apple juice method


I take a totally different tack on the yellow jackets. We go after them in the spring when it's just the queens. Fill a super soaker with soapy water, hand it to the grandson, tell him there is an endless supply of water with a bit of dishsoap in it, and we pay 5 cents per yellow jacket he puts in the pile. In a few hours he'll have more than a hundred dead yellow jacket queens in the pile, has had fun, and that's over a hundred nests we wont have later in the season. 1 dead yellow jacket in April is equivalent to hundreds dead in August.


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## Nicksotherhoney (Jun 10, 2017)

I did put up some traps in early spring( the w.h.y traps) caught a handful and the landowner also put some up..I just remember it being out of control this time of year last year. Last year I was hoping for the cold to set in and kill them, I never hope for the cold to set in if that tells you how bad It was.


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## Nicksotherhoney (Jun 10, 2017)

I’m also going to put a serious of holes in my new hive bodies like @GregB does..


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## kcarroll (May 21, 2021)

I just found a wasps nest conveniently located underneath one of my beehives on the bottom board, about the size of a golf ball.  The stand has it about 2 feet off the ground. Guess I can't blame them for wanting to be close to the food source.

I'm not sure how I didn't get stung when I squished it and started swatting at the residents. I guess they weren't feeling too aggressive.

I did get buzzed by a few bees that weren't happy with the noise I was making though.

I too started with the WHY traps early in the spring and caught about 20 yellow jacket queens. The wasps seem to avoid them though. Using the 10 week capsules. Still have them out, and they're still attracting/trapping yellow jackets.

I also bought a heavy duty fly swatter and I kill (swat and behead) any that cross my path while I'm in the bee yard. Obviously, catching the queens early in the season is way more efficient.


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## Akovia (Aug 3, 2020)

kcarroll said:


> I just found a wasps nest conveniently located underneath one of my beehives on the bottom board, about the size of a golf ball.  The stand has it about 2 feet off the ground. Guess I can't blame them for wanting to be close to the food source.
> 
> I'm not sure how I didn't get stung when I squished it and started swatting at the residents. I guess they weren't feeling too aggressive.
> 
> ...


Paper wasps are a beekeepers friend so hopefully this was not your target. Their preferred food is yellowjackets and they are not particularly agressive. I move nests out of my greenhouse annually. Clip the nest, hot glue gun to a small board, screw it under an eve somewhere nearby.


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## joebeewhisperer (May 13, 2020)

kcarroll said:


> I also bought a heavy duty fly swatter and I kill (swat and behead) any that cross my path while I'm in the bee yard. Obviously, catching the queens early in the season is way more efficient.


For sure. I put out some disposable traps, but I was a bit late to get the full effect. 


Akovia said:


> Paper wasps are a beekeepers friend so hopefully this was not your target. Their preferred food is yellowjackets and they are not particularly agressive. I move nests out of my greenhouse annually. Clip the nest, hot glue gun to a small board, screw it under an eve somewhere nearby.


I usually have a live and let live agreement with wasps. Between our log house and wooden storage building, they are plentiful. I have a drum kit in the building and sat down to practice last week. There were 2 medium sized paper nests as well as some "dirt daubers" within 8-10'. They went on alert, but didn't come down after me. Who's a good wasp? You are!  

The dirt building wasps prey almost entirely on spiders. It's a rough old world our there, ya know?


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## Akovia (Aug 3, 2020)

joebeewhisperer said:


> For sure. I put out some disposable traps, but I was a bit late to get the full effect.
> 
> I usually have a live and let live agreement with wasps. Between our log house and wooden storage building, they are plentiful. I have a drum kit in the building and sat down to practice last week. There were 2 medium sized paper nests as well as some "dirt daubers" within 8-10'. They went on alert, but didn't come down after me. Who's a good wasp? You are!
> 
> The dirt building wasps prey almost entirely on spiders. It's a rough old world our there, ya know?


Like bees, wasps are aggravated by vibration. The specific and exact definition of drumming.😂


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## joebeewhisperer (May 13, 2020)

Akovia said:


> Like bees, wasps are aggravated by vibration. The specific and exact definition of drumming.😂


Bees, wasps, wives, moms, neighbors, authorities,... all can be aggravated by this particular vibration.


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