If you learn about them a lot, they are actually very interesting insects, and you need to observe them a bit to really learn to like them. First things first, remember that their swarming/stinging tendencies are generally only in self defense. They get a bad rap because of how defensive some species are, but if you heard a loud noise outside your home with your kids in it and were armed (with a stinger in their case) you may feel inclined to use it. They are actually very beneficial pest removers. They love eating all sorts of insects that eat our crops and they actually don’t digest the food, rather they must capture food for their young. Since wasps and hornets have narrow waists, they can’t eat most protein rich insects and instead feed it to their larvae, who then secrete a sugary like substance which the adults can actually digest. So when you see a wasp/hornet flying around remember they’re just trying to feed the next generation of workers. Watching them fly around in the wild or even on youtube can help you not be as scared of them. I used to be very afraid of them and have been stung by various species of wasp and hornet many times, but learning about them really led me to respect them. You will never really have the same regard for them as you do a honey bee for instance, as handling wasps and hornets is practically impossible. Learn about their life cycle, their caste system, the different species in your area, and watch them fly around, while giving them space and respect in order to avoid being stung. If you ever come across an active nest, watch them fly around it while giving them space. You can even find videos of them flying, hunting, building their nests, etc. on youtube where there’s no risk of being stung. They really are cool insects that are super interesting to learn about and watch in the wild, they just demand a bit more respect and care when interacting with them to avoid stinging.
>They get a bad rap because of how defensive some species are, but if you heard a loud noise outside your home with your kids in it and were armed (with a stinger in their case) you may feel inclined to use it.
So they're the open carry Americans of the insect world?
If they remember faces, could they learn to trust us? Like 'oh! no sting, good face, just walks by' or is that not even possible? Do they only remember for anger and meanness?
I'm in the same position as you. I can get super close to fuzzy little bees and be totally fine. I'll watch them, try to figure out the species.
With yellow jackets and other wasps it's an immediate NOPE unless I immediately recognize the species as non-aggressive(for instance, solitary black wasps look funking terrifying but are only aggro if you stomp on their nest).
I teach my kid to leave spiders alone bc they eat other bugs. Wasps are just ughhhh
I'll actually feed paper wasps by hand, so it can kinda work that way. I think an important thing to keep in mind with wasps is most times people get stung, it's when they're aggressive towards the wasp (swatting at it, tampering with a nest). In my experience, if you're gentle to them they won't bother you.
This! I work at a nature preserve, so I spend hours a day around "my" wasps that live around/on my little office shack. The issue that often comes up between wasps and people is, we're huge! We don't NOTICE if we are threatening them, so we think "wow, what a jerk, stinging for no reason" while the wasp is thinking "wow, what a jerk, trying to stomp on me/my home/my babies"
The wasps around my office and I have an understanding, we respect each other's space.
Just remember that if they come toward you it’s possible and likely hey are thirsty. They only get aggressive if we are freaking out and that scares them. When we sweat that is a water source for them.
An idea for bug lovers is to have a big plastic or ceramic tray filled with pea gravel or river rock and then fill with water. Flying bugs will use it as a safe to land water source. And this will help them leave you alone.
Don’t act aggressive to them or go near a nest and likely they will not bother you.
I worked at a Home Depot garden center for nearly 6 years and still work around plants. Never stung while working.
You don't fear wasps, you fear vespid wasps and hornets, in the Vespidae family of the Vespoideae superfamily, one of 19 superfamilies of wasp:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apocrita#Extant_families_and_superfamilies
These account for about 5000 of the 100,000 recognized species of wasp, but they also account for most of the eusocial wasps. Eusocial wasps, bees, and ants are all colony-forming, build large semi-permanent nests, often on homes and structures, or in people's yards in the case of ground-nesting yellowjackets. Eusocial insects aggressively defend their nests, unlike their solitary cousins who will always prioritize their own survival. Some of the most common examples of these we encounter are invasive species, like European Hornets, German Yellowjackets, or European Paper Wasps, that are encouraged by urbanization and displace and prey on native wildlife. Even if it's a native species, if it's built its nest on your home I don't think there's any shame in removing them. Do it in winter and you don't even gotta use insecticide.
Solitary wasps on the other hand are great, their nests are out of the way and not defended aggressively if at all, and they're natural pest control. They are insanely diverse, and nearly all of them are specialist parasitic predators. Think of practically any bug and there's a family or several of wasps that specializes in hunting them to feed to their larva, like spiders in the case of Mud Daubers. Some aren't carnivorous at all though, like gall-forming wasps whose hosts are specific groups of plants, sometimes only a single species is their host. One of the weirdest examples of these are the Fig Wasps, that form galls in the flowers of fig trees, but some have co-evolved with fig species that adapted to using the wasps for pollination:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fig_wasp
So you’re saying, just like with bees, the solitary ones are truly the best of the little buddies XD
(I love honey bees and bumble bees, they are cute and precious but solitary bees are my favorite bc I just think they’re extra neat. Carpenter bees have my heart)
Yes! I love them too :)
it makes me very upset when people surround their hard built nests with gasoline in a cup. how ignorant can people be?
let's leave them ALONE. if it means we have to be inside away from them so what? they deserve their space too xoxo
nope. it's a cruel way to show the world that you are no better than the worst. Wasp's have very important jobs and we can spare a little space on our patio for them :)
I recommend Seirian Sumner's book 'Endless Forms' if you're interested in learning about wasps and think that might help you understand them.
Many species are devoted parents, and yes some recognize faces but so do dogs and cats and humans! It's no issue provided you don't give them a reason to hate your face. I work at a nature preserve, so I get to know "my" wasps.
The other day I was putting up a display, and there was a small paper wasp nest inches from my hand most of the time. Mama wasp had no issue with me, and it was interesting to hear the sounds she made while working.
Something I think is also very cool is, social wasps don't just recognize human faces, they recognize other wasps too. So, when you consider swatting/smushing/poisoning a wasp, remember that she's got a family who knows her face just as well as your family knows yours.
Most wasps just mind their own business and don’t bother anyone unless they feel threatened. Yellowjackets on the other hand are just little yellow striped winged demons. They want your food and will fight you for it
i giant wasp was hurt or sick it landed on my hand last summer. it's stinger was pulsating. but it didn't sting me. they can't help the way they are. it's our job to just let them have their space :)
If you learn about them a lot, they are actually very interesting insects, and you need to observe them a bit to really learn to like them. First things first, remember that their swarming/stinging tendencies are generally only in self defense. They get a bad rap because of how defensive some species are, but if you heard a loud noise outside your home with your kids in it and were armed (with a stinger in their case) you may feel inclined to use it. They are actually very beneficial pest removers. They love eating all sorts of insects that eat our crops and they actually don’t digest the food, rather they must capture food for their young. Since wasps and hornets have narrow waists, they can’t eat most protein rich insects and instead feed it to their larvae, who then secrete a sugary like substance which the adults can actually digest. So when you see a wasp/hornet flying around remember they’re just trying to feed the next generation of workers. Watching them fly around in the wild or even on youtube can help you not be as scared of them. I used to be very afraid of them and have been stung by various species of wasp and hornet many times, but learning about them really led me to respect them. You will never really have the same regard for them as you do a honey bee for instance, as handling wasps and hornets is practically impossible. Learn about their life cycle, their caste system, the different species in your area, and watch them fly around, while giving them space and respect in order to avoid being stung. If you ever come across an active nest, watch them fly around it while giving them space. You can even find videos of them flying, hunting, building their nests, etc. on youtube where there’s no risk of being stung. They really are cool insects that are super interesting to learn about and watch in the wild, they just demand a bit more respect and care when interacting with them to avoid stinging.
>They get a bad rap because of how defensive some species are, but if you heard a loud noise outside your home with your kids in it and were armed (with a stinger in their case) you may feel inclined to use it. So they're the open carry Americans of the insect world?
Yeah pretty much, and they take stand your ground laws very seriously
If they remember faces, could they learn to trust us? Like 'oh! no sting, good face, just walks by' or is that not even possible? Do they only remember for anger and meanness? I'm in the same position as you. I can get super close to fuzzy little bees and be totally fine. I'll watch them, try to figure out the species. With yellow jackets and other wasps it's an immediate NOPE unless I immediately recognize the species as non-aggressive(for instance, solitary black wasps look funking terrifying but are only aggro if you stomp on their nest). I teach my kid to leave spiders alone bc they eat other bugs. Wasps are just ughhhh
I wish you could just give them treato like befriending crows. Then they’d be like “no sting, this one brings food” But that’s not how wasps work XD
I'll actually feed paper wasps by hand, so it can kinda work that way. I think an important thing to keep in mind with wasps is most times people get stung, it's when they're aggressive towards the wasp (swatting at it, tampering with a nest). In my experience, if you're gentle to them they won't bother you.
This! I work at a nature preserve, so I spend hours a day around "my" wasps that live around/on my little office shack. The issue that often comes up between wasps and people is, we're huge! We don't NOTICE if we are threatening them, so we think "wow, what a jerk, stinging for no reason" while the wasp is thinking "wow, what a jerk, trying to stomp on me/my home/my babies" The wasps around my office and I have an understanding, we respect each other's space.
Just remember that if they come toward you it’s possible and likely hey are thirsty. They only get aggressive if we are freaking out and that scares them. When we sweat that is a water source for them. An idea for bug lovers is to have a big plastic or ceramic tray filled with pea gravel or river rock and then fill with water. Flying bugs will use it as a safe to land water source. And this will help them leave you alone. Don’t act aggressive to them or go near a nest and likely they will not bother you. I worked at a Home Depot garden center for nearly 6 years and still work around plants. Never stung while working.
You don't fear wasps, you fear vespid wasps and hornets, in the Vespidae family of the Vespoideae superfamily, one of 19 superfamilies of wasp: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apocrita#Extant_families_and_superfamilies These account for about 5000 of the 100,000 recognized species of wasp, but they also account for most of the eusocial wasps. Eusocial wasps, bees, and ants are all colony-forming, build large semi-permanent nests, often on homes and structures, or in people's yards in the case of ground-nesting yellowjackets. Eusocial insects aggressively defend their nests, unlike their solitary cousins who will always prioritize their own survival. Some of the most common examples of these we encounter are invasive species, like European Hornets, German Yellowjackets, or European Paper Wasps, that are encouraged by urbanization and displace and prey on native wildlife. Even if it's a native species, if it's built its nest on your home I don't think there's any shame in removing them. Do it in winter and you don't even gotta use insecticide. Solitary wasps on the other hand are great, their nests are out of the way and not defended aggressively if at all, and they're natural pest control. They are insanely diverse, and nearly all of them are specialist parasitic predators. Think of practically any bug and there's a family or several of wasps that specializes in hunting them to feed to their larva, like spiders in the case of Mud Daubers. Some aren't carnivorous at all though, like gall-forming wasps whose hosts are specific groups of plants, sometimes only a single species is their host. One of the weirdest examples of these are the Fig Wasps, that form galls in the flowers of fig trees, but some have co-evolved with fig species that adapted to using the wasps for pollination: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fig_wasp
So you’re saying, just like with bees, the solitary ones are truly the best of the little buddies XD (I love honey bees and bumble bees, they are cute and precious but solitary bees are my favorite bc I just think they’re extra neat. Carpenter bees have my heart)
Yes! I love them too :) it makes me very upset when people surround their hard built nests with gasoline in a cup. how ignorant can people be? let's leave them ALONE. if it means we have to be inside away from them so what? they deserve their space too xoxo
That is an awesome way to kill them I will have to try.
nope. it's a cruel way to show the world that you are no better than the worst. Wasp's have very important jobs and we can spare a little space on our patio for them :)
I’m just commenting to see what advice you get because it sounds like I wrote this post. Good on ya OP!
I recommend Seirian Sumner's book 'Endless Forms' if you're interested in learning about wasps and think that might help you understand them. Many species are devoted parents, and yes some recognize faces but so do dogs and cats and humans! It's no issue provided you don't give them a reason to hate your face. I work at a nature preserve, so I get to know "my" wasps. The other day I was putting up a display, and there was a small paper wasp nest inches from my hand most of the time. Mama wasp had no issue with me, and it was interesting to hear the sounds she made while working. Something I think is also very cool is, social wasps don't just recognize human faces, they recognize other wasps too. So, when you consider swatting/smushing/poisoning a wasp, remember that she's got a family who knows her face just as well as your family knows yours.
Most wasps just mind their own business and don’t bother anyone unless they feel threatened. Yellowjackets on the other hand are just little yellow striped winged demons. They want your food and will fight you for it
I am less scared of them after drenching their nest with raid. Always worked for me.
/:
not kind. always be kind! Why not leave them alone and let them continue their hard work :(
Where are you weirdo’s from? Mars?
i giant wasp was hurt or sick it landed on my hand last summer. it's stinger was pulsating. but it didn't sting me. they can't help the way they are. it's our job to just let them have their space :)