It's getting to that time of year when wasp behaviour changes. And as far as most people are concerned, it's a change for the worse...
It's getting to that time of year when wasp behaviour changes. And as far as most people are concerned, it's a change for the worse. Since wasps don't have that many friends to start with, this is a yet further serious decline in their reputation. They are in desperate need of some good PR.
Having spent the last four or five months diligently, but rather secretively, helping the gardener by eating caterpillars, aphids, flies and other insects, now is the time they start making a nuisance of themselves around the picnic table. There is a very good reason for this - they have nothing better to do. In the last few weeks, the large nests have been running down and churning out new males and females (queens) off on mating flights; but the resident workers (sterile females) no longer have a burgeoning brood of nest mate grubs to rear in the brood combs. Since it was the grubs that needed the chewed insect protein, the listless workers are now left to forage for themselves, at flowers, fallen fruit and jam sandwiches.
They will not last long though. In the next few weeks they will all die off, except for those newly mated queens. These seek out dry hibernation sites in dead wood, loose tree bark, dry stone walls or lofts, pull their wings tight to their bodies and turn off their metabolism until next spring.
Unfortunately, in the process of dying off the workers make one last attempt to satisfy their sweet tooth, and this is why they start paying close attention to cream teas and iced buns. It's no use me telling you to stop waving your arms about or flapping napkins at them, they will keep coming. The only point I'd like to make is that they are not being aggressive, and ordinarily won't sting you. This was what they might have done, earlier in the year, if you stood directly in the flight path back to the nest and they perceived you as a threat.
On the other hand, don't be complacent. Wasps often visit carrion, so I'd never knowingly let them walk over my food. Our back garden is a bit short of dead animals at the moment, but I noticed they were paying particular attention to a couple of victims of the 12-year-old's sleep-over party at the weekend. Two dead slugs, seemingly crushed under the tent were being carefully examined by at least four wasps when I cleared up on Sunday afternoon. They're welcome to them.
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