revenge on the effing wasps!

[Dean Heighington]

After noticing something flung into my van window at 50mph yesterday and briefly thinking ... Wasp! I promptly forgot and was reminded several minutes later when I pulled up at home, sat back in a sigh of relief at the end of another week and was promptly stung in the small of my back. I react badly to bites and stings and knew I would be going on a Histamine rollercoaster for the next eleventy2 hours!

So I jumped out the cab, reached for my Rothenberger blow torch (on the passenger seat) and incinerated the little fucker.

Today (still in pain) I spent the afternoon at a family barbecue, torch to hand, protecting everyone from the bloody useless but pesky things... Last count was 25 me, wasps nil.

I am now a hero :)

[The Medway Handyman]

Top man. I hate the bastards.

What is the point of wasps?

[Bob Martin]

The point? Do you believe in an Intelligent Designer? ;-)

[Dean Heighington]

Let's assume there is and that s/he/it made wasps on a Sunday morning ... Grumpy at having to work on the day of 'rest' and with a massive hangover from a late & boozy Saturday night! B-)

Apparently, frogs eat wasps. I have a book called 'Does Anything Eat Wasps' which is published by New Scientist Magazine- full of Q&As from it's Last Word column.

My van's seatback is intact as my blowtorch is the trigger variety and can be used for a very short burst of flame... Just right for wasps :)

[jgharston]

Do wasps pollinate anything? I thought they were carnivores. Admittedly, there's the fig wasp which causes figs to reproduce, but that's from the wasp laying larvae in them AFAICR.

JGH

[Jon Fairbairn]

Some plants specifically (eg water figwort). I?m no biologist, but wasps that eat nectar surely pollinate.

[Ian Jackson]

On a slightly different tack: When wasps come into the house, they usually make straight for a window (presumably to try and escape).

My questions are:

1. Why do they want to come in the first place?
2. Why do they resist all attempts to let them out? If you open the part of the window where they are banging their heads, why do they still refuse to fly out? They either continue banging their heads on the glass, or else move to another pane which isn't open!

[dennis]

There is no glass in nature so they are confused. They don't have a big brain to work it out and can't teach other wasps the solution. If it becomes a survival issue evolution will provide them with a solution, probably a glass cutter.

[Davey]

snip

Now that would be an evil insect! Successful, though.

[Dean Heighington]

So, nothing to do with being off their faces on fermented fallen apples then... ;)