tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9199848742267562587.post5576057460631099201..comments2024-02-06T10:31:24.491-07:00Comments on Watching the World Wake Up: Weekend Cleanup Part 2: All About YellowjacketsWatcherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02248341788957416471noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9199848742267562587.post-51650120638308835312018-12-20T11:25:49.381-07:002018-12-20T11:25:49.381-07:00Well, here it is, nine years later. I'm trying...Well, here it is, nine years later. I'm trying to learn as much as I can about the enemy - the yellow jackets in my backyard. I'm also an engineer, and overstudy everything before I tackle a project. I learned a lot from your post, and thank you. <br /><br />I'm now wondering how cold does it have to get for the workers to die off. Here in tropical Florida, we don't get many freezing days. Earlier this month (December), I was cleaning my yard when I disturbed a nest and got attacked. They sure hadn't died off! I went back a few days later to try and find the nest, and was attacked again.<br /><br />I put out commercial traps, which haven't trapped a single yellow jacket. I made my own trap baited with (canned, wet) cat food (chicken and fish) and apple cider vinegar. The home made trap captured a few, but I can still find them flying around the suspected nest location.<br /><br />I've now got a beekeeper suit and some (Bayer) Tempo Dust insecticide. The battle resumes!<br /><br />Merry Christmas and happy New Year!<br /><br />- Arved<br />NE Florida, USAArved Grasshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02144512469728230160noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9199848742267562587.post-22872681197259052552009-12-01T11:29:59.068-07:002009-12-01T11:29:59.068-07:00In my defense, to me it just looked like a hole in...In my defense, to me it just looked like a hole in the ground.<br /><br />And hey, don't you always put sticks in holes in the ground? It's a curiosity thing.<br /><br />Until they all came buzzing out like crazy. Did I mention it was a delightful summer afternoon? And we got all dressed up in our winter gear to go out and squirt Liquid Death (aka Raid) into the hole? I'm sure the neighbors thought we were crazy.<br /><br />I'm not really SCARED of spiders. Some of them just creep me out a lot. That's different. Besides, most of them are okay.KristenThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01187723351100391708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9199848742267562587.post-60024677452998030562009-11-30T22:07:13.642-07:002009-11-30T22:07:13.642-07:00Maggie- Ah, you reminded me. They love soda. I onc...Maggie- Ah, you reminded me. They love soda. I once gulped one in a can of a sprite but spat it out before it stung me. It flew away too.<br /><br />KristenT- For a lady afraid of spiders you sure are pretty bold with the yellowjackets, what with that stick thing and all…<br /><br />Jube- Yes, petiole is the botanical term too. Don’t know who coined it first or where either/both got it from.<br /><br />And good eye. Though I’m suspicious of the Western YJ range map. It shows Vegas and Reno within range but a big hole in central NV. Next time I cross the NV on I-80 or US50 in summer I’m making a point of stopping to picnic in Austin or Battle Mtn or someplace and testing the map.Watcherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02248341788957416471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9199848742267562587.post-90748454993728091972009-11-30T21:48:13.548-07:002009-11-30T21:48:13.548-07:00I hate pretty much all yellow jackets and wasps, b...I hate pretty much all yellow jackets and wasps, but the post was interesting. They are the insects I will kill without hesitation or mercy if I find them near the house. <br /><br />I think most of our kids have been stung at one time or another by yellow jackets, and they have made many a family picnic miserable. <br /><br />Thanks for the cool info.Enelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00967981896718833776noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9199848742267562587.post-7308363261582463612009-11-30T20:41:27.713-07:002009-11-30T20:41:27.713-07:00Wow, super awesome expand-o-graphic.
What's w...Wow, super awesome expand-o-graphic.<br /><br />What's with Nevada not having any yellow jackets? The climate/terrain is so similar to western Utah you'd think they would be there. <br /><br />Totally trippy about you and AW being so close to the introduction sites of Euro Paper Wasp.<br /><br />Isn't petiole also the stem part of a plant leaf? Did the botanists and entomologists somehow run out of words to make up?Lucyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10896006691904225007noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9199848742267562587.post-25507840756400617592009-11-30T15:05:39.315-07:002009-11-30T15:05:39.315-07:00I had an awesome paper wasp nest up in the eaves o...I had an awesome paper wasp nest up in the eaves of my house once. It was the size of a football. How could I not notice that thing, and how long had it been there before our prospective house painters noticed it?<br /><br />We also get mud wasps, usually here at the office. They always want to build their nest right above the front door. Not cool. Every so often someone (not me) has to go outside and knock it down.<br /><br />I had a yellow jacket nest once in the ground in my backyard. For some reason, I thought it would be a good idea to put a stick in it. Not cool. I haven't run that fast EVER. But I learned not to put sticks in holes, anyway.<br /><br />Very interesting info on the markings, it's always startling to see that the drawings match reality so closely!KristenThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01187723351100391708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9199848742267562587.post-69759953691817411802009-11-30T12:26:24.382-07:002009-11-30T12:26:24.382-07:00One thing about wasps I found interesting- I was s...One thing about wasps I found interesting- I was speaking with an exterminator and he told me that they are "solar powered". They need the heat to be active. That is why you don't see them at night or during cold weather. The best time to eradicate a nest is in the early morning when they are inside and inactive.<br />mjMike J in Fremontnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9199848742267562587.post-4874551052704926172009-11-30T11:45:03.231-07:002009-11-30T11:45:03.231-07:00@KanyonKris - sounds like what I found in one of o...@KanyonKris - sounds like what I found in one of our trees a month ago. They matched photos I found of bald faced hornets online and the nest also matched. Amazing how big the combs get as I busted mine open and found it was a virtual apartment complex with 6 full "floors" of combs. I brought it into the garage overnight to study only to find out the warmer climate "woke up" a bunch of what I thought were dead carcasses. My wife wasn't impressed. :) http://cellulareric.blogspot.com/2009/10/giant-nest.htmlErichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16173164395939630735noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9199848742267562587.post-70678872140750969372009-11-30T10:17:36.963-07:002009-11-30T10:17:36.963-07:00I'm impressed by the Yellowjacket life cycle. ...I'm impressed by the Yellowjacket life cycle. Amazing a fertilized new queen can survive through the winter on fat reserves.<br /><br />We get a lot of paper wasps around our house. I'm fascinated by the construction of their combs. We have one in our shed that is bigger than a football and enclosed (not an open comb). I'm going to see if I can find some corpses to make an ID.KanyonKrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01954169751206336705noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9199848742267562587.post-1790009809636483542009-11-30T09:50:18.815-07:002009-11-30T09:50:18.815-07:00love the new popout graphic. hope it wasn't to...love the new popout graphic. hope it wasn't too hard, because now that you've set a precedent, you can't go back.Ski Bike Junkiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12295969126174565599noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9199848742267562587.post-89383480384773512402009-11-30T07:34:24.960-07:002009-11-30T07:34:24.960-07:00magnificent post. i've been curious about was...magnificent post. i've been curious about wasps since the greenhouse in which i was working this summer was overwhelmed by them. they came for the spider mites, which was appreciated, but they also had an uncanny ability to drown in my tea.maggiehttp://giroofasaurus-vexed.comnoreply@blogger.com