#58 The Madman and the Wasps

                The madman and the wasps – all summer I have watched him chase them away from his hummingbird feeders. It was a futile effort because there were just too many of them. All of a sudden, he stopped. At first, I thought he’d just given up (so unlike him!). But I found out he’d been doing some research on wasps and yellowjackets and how to get rid of them. Once and for all.

Important Pollinators

                In the process he learned how important the darned things are to the ecosystem. They are actually important pollinators. As we’ve said before we garden for the pollinators as much as for ourselves. All summer we have watched our “friendly” pollinators (you know, the ones that don’t harm us) flit through the gardens. As you can imagine, our gardens are alive with pollinators. If you stop to look, you’ll probably notice that your yard is too.

                It starts in the winter with the bees showing up for nectar in the crocuses and skunk cabbage. Remember, the madman also once hated skunk cabbage. Then master gardener Tom Kalal told him how bees use the early flowers of skunk cabbage for food and shelter as the snow begins to melt.

So Many Insects

                Connecticut is home to 916 species of insects – 49 of them are butterflies, 341 are moths, and over 300 are bees. That makes for an awful lot of things flitting around in one’s garden. Because he’s part crow, the madman appreciates the showier ones more. For him that category includes all types of butterflies and moths and of course the hummingbirds (although, of course, they are not insects).

                I often get called away from important tasks to check out something like a silver spotted skipper on a zinnia. Or the larval form of a giant swallowtail butterfly on one of his citrus trees. We have also been known to follow a monarch on its pollen-seeking travels through the garden.

Caterpillar ID

                Our love of these flying art forms keeps us from randomly squishing caterpillars until they have been positively identified. The green worm of the imported cabbage moth doesn’t stand a chance, nor does the eastern tent caterpillar – those he squishes with glee.

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                But, as usual, here we go getting carried away with the butterflies. We started off talking about the wasps and the madman’s change of heart. Like a lot of people, he seems to think their numbers are increasing. And, he may be right. With steadily upturning temperatures, scientists are noting that wasp species are reaching farther north.

Wasps

                The most common wasps we have in our yard are the yellow jackets, the paper wasps and the mud daubers. We have always hated them all – probably because our mothers taught us to be afraid of them. Most of these belong to the family Vespidae. They can be solitary or social. The solitary species don’t seem to bother anyone. The females lay single eggs and leave them to fend for themselves. The social ones, on the other hand can be a real pain in the neck and other parts, depending upon where they sting you.

Yellow Jacket

                The yellow jacket is perhaps the most commonly known because of its propensity to ruin a nice summer picnic. Over the years, they have developed a taste for human food, especially meats and sugary summer drinks. But his research has given the madman a new appreciation for these insects.

                From spring to fall, the only yellow jackets we see are females. In the spring, a single fertilized female yellow jacket begins a colony in a sheltered spot. This can be in an abandoned underground burrow or an opening in the side of your house. She lays a few eggs which she nourishes until they develop into female workers. These workers expand the nest while mom lays more eggs. Amazingly, the female can store a large amount of sperm so she has no need of a male at this time. What you see throughout your yard in the summer are female yellow jackets, and only the females can sting. There’s our problem.

                But, in reality, they are only gathering food to sustain the colony. And, they only sting when they feel threatened. Because they have thousands of mouths to feed, the yellow jackets are effective at insect control, and are an important component of IPM (Integrated Pest Management).

Stings

                If you are unlucky enough to be a perceived threat, you know how painful and itchy these stings can be. But, unless you are allergic to the venom, no medical attention is usually required. As the daughter of a mid-western farm woman, I always learned to treat stings by applying a cut potato or onion to the site. Never knew why, but it always seemed to work for me. The madman, on the other hand, usually reaches for a wet tea bag after quite a bit of yelling. The real goal in treatment is to neutralize the venom which is acidic.

                In late summer and early fall, male yellow jackets hatch and females start looking for a mate. A fertilized female will then hibernate for the winter, storing large amounts of sperm within her body. All the other yellow jackets will die off.

Paper Wasps

                Much like a yellow jacket colony, a paper wasp colony is started in the spring by a fertilized female who has overwintered. The nest is made up of chewed up plant fibers that resemble paper; hence their name. Since the nests are fairly delicate, a paper wasp queen seeks out a sheltered site such as the eave of your house. Although several females may be involved in starting a colony, by midsummer, only the strongest queen remains.

                Throughout the summer, the queen continues to lay eggs while female workers tend the nest. They are active only during the day and only sting if the nest is threatened. Near the end of summer, males hatch and mate with females. Fertilized females seek sheltered spots to ride out the winter, often banding together with other fertilized females. And, In the spring, the cycle starts again.

Mud Daubers

                Yellow jackets and paper wasps are examples of social wasps, but there is a solitary wasp we would like to talk about because its nests are so common in our area – the mud dauber. The mud dauber is named for the nest created by the female. Mud is carried to a nesting site and molded into place with the wasp’s mandibles. The nest consists of a series of mud cells, each made separately. When a cell is complete, the female stocks it with several paralyzed insects or spiders. She then lays a single egg and covers the cell with mud. After making a series of these cells, she covers the whole thing with another layer of mud and moves on.

One species of mud dauber makes a nest that looks like a series of organ pipes. Another creates a smooth nest of mud. And, a third species uses any old empty nest she finds. The eggs hatch and the larvae feed on the stored food—they then pupate and spend the winter in diapause (a state similar to hibernation). When the weather warms up out they come to start the cycle again. Since the stingers are used for paralyzing insects, these wasps generally don’t threaten humans. As soon as the madman told me they feed on spiders, I figured they are okay.

Truce – For Now

                So now, the madman has established a shaky truce with the wasp. He would still like them to leave his hummingbird feeders alone, but knows this probably will not happen. Luckily, he has learned that they are not likely to drive the hummingbirds away.

                We have taken a few steps to minimize the presence of wasps and other things at the feeders. Here are some suggestions he’s found.

1. Hang the feeder in the shade.
2. Use saucer-type feeders as opposed to tubular feeders.
3. Set up a yellow wasp-feeder with a stronger sugar solution a short distance away from your hummingbird feeder.

                He’s just invited me to sit with him near the back flower bed to watch the pollinators and observe his feeder. I’ll bring the lemonade.