Just finished off a wasp in the conservatory, bugger was making a real nuis ance of itself. I have never seen one alive this late into November is this a record or fairly normal? I think anyone planning any nest clearances mig ht be wise to wait for the first frosts.
Richard
A late-flying ladybird here. At least they don't sting or buzz.
We has a nest here which is still showing activity (at much reduced levels from a couple of months ago). It is still very mild for the time of year - at least down in the deep south of Hampshire.
But they do make annoying an 'clattering' noise when they get trapped inside louvred office lighting ...
Just finished off a wasp in the conservatory, bugger was making a real nuisance of itself. I have never seen one alive this late into November is this a record or fairly normal? I think anyone planning any nest clearances might be wise to wait for the first frosts.
Thanks for the reminder. I've not driven my Land Rover for 3 weeks and wasps tend to hibernate in the flaps of the canvas only to appear when I have driven a couple of miles and I'm off to a trial on Sunday.
Mike
They're still around here, and I think they last until it gets colder and the supply of sugars in the garden dries up - ivy is one of the last to finish, and they're still buzzing around the ivy flowers at the moment.
Generally speaking, gardeners love them in greenhouses - they tend to eat all the insects gardeners don't like eating their plants.
Except for the Queen, wasps don't hibernate. Thw workers all die off in the Autumn.
isance of itself. I have never seen one alive this late into November is th is a record or fairly normal? I think anyone planning any nest clearances m ight be wise to wait for the first frosts.
Leave the poor bugger alone or turn it outside if you're afraid.
nuisance of itself. I have never seen one alive this late into November is this a record or fairly normal? I think anyone planning any nest clearances might be wise to wait for the first frosts.
Global warming of course!
There are plenty around here in outer London. I think the problem is that they like building their nests around hot water pipes in houses, getting in through the air bricks. Brian
Are you sure its not a carpet beetle? Brian
Snap, a few flying ladybirds still around. In SE Essex I have a cabbage with newly hatched caterpillars and yesterday a butterfly fluttered into my porch sheltering from the heavy rain.
And they *can* bite, did you not experience the plague year a few decades ago?
Killed a queen wasp this evening that came in with the firewood, so she must have started hibernating.
I did. And yes they can - but don't remember ever suffering myself. Had to check but it was the hot summer of 1976.
Yes, 15.3C at 8:30 here in W'ville.
In '76 - I had a few 'sting/bite' and later read that they were trying to get water. Don't know if it's true.
Not sure about wasps, but in Spring honey bees will gather water, in order to dilute their winter stores of honey to feed on it themselves and to feed to developing grubs. I can't see any equivalent need for wasps. They don't have food stored over the winter, their grubs are carnivorous, and the adults get their nourishment from the grubs.
There aren't any wasps in the winter except for the queens who are all hibernating.
Quite.
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