Paper Wasp
Have you been stung by a wasp recently? If so, it’s time you check your home for Paper Wasps.
In the Newcastle and Hunter Region, Paper Wasps are well and truly very active right now. In the past few weeks the amount of wasps around looking for food and nesting materials to build their nest has dramatically increased.
Adult wasps will feed on nectar, and their Larvae feed on caterpillars that are provided by the adults. So, if you have plants with nectar and caterpillars around your yard, then there is a good chance that you have wasps on your property.
Wasp nest under chair in Newcastle
Wasps are stinging locals
Recently, we attended a property in Merewether to complete a termite check for a client. Prior to starting the inspection, our client mentioned she had been stung a few days prior by what she thought might be a wasp, but could not find a nest or anything. Having a look around for what could be causing the problem, we found, hidden underneath a chair, a live wasp nest with several wasps living on it. It was when she had sat on the chair that she had been stung.
Under chairs and tables outside the home are quite common locations for wasps to build their nests, which can make dangerous locations for those who sit near them.
Other places to look out for them are on the actual surface of the walls. If you want to check your home, pay attention to the North and West facing external walls, window ledges, window frames and eaves first. These are the positions on the home that catch the most sunlight and provide the best conditions for optimum reproduction.
Large wasp nest
Be careful, though, because they won’t just make nests on the external façade of the structure. They’ll also commonly nest on branches of shrubs and plants, and this is when most stings occur as the plant has been brushed passed, disturbing the nest and sending the wasps into a threatened state, causing them to defend.
Try to have a quick look on the branches of the tree or shrub before you trim it, brush past it or work below it.
In the right environment, and if left unchecked and allowed to grow, these nests can become quite large and contain many individual wasps. This will pose more of risk and increase the chance of being stung.
How to get rid of wasps
Control of this insect is best left to professionals, who have the proper personal protective equipment and very good products capable of controlling the adult wasps very fast.
Still concerned?
If you find that you have a problem with Paper Wasps nesting on your property, Call Amalgamated Pest Control Newcastle. Ask about our special wasp prices when booking in with our bundle pest services.
Call today on 4488 4019.