Questions & answers about wasp nests
pat asked:
i have a wasp nest in the loft and a wasp controller said he will have to put a gas canister in to kill them. how long will it take to kill them and once this is done will other wasps make their nests up there
Paul Sweet replied:
Hi Pat, I have never heard of any pest controllers using gas canisters to kill a wasp nest! Years ago, wasp nests were killed with a gas called Cymag (cyanide gas), but this practise ended years ago. These days, a powder insecticide is used to destroy nests and is either injected into the nest or blown into the entrance where the wasps are entering. The description you have mentioned sounds strange to me. Regards to wasps making nests in the future, how can I say? Its pot luck, you may go ten years without another nest, or you may have one each year. Wasps never re-use old nests; they build a new nest each year.
john D asked:
is it true what david bellamy said years ago on the tele. he collected hundreds of wasps in sweet jar advising that they were all males if his researchers got it right. to prove it he put his arm into the jar, agitating the wasps bt rotating his arm, saying that if they were all males he would not be stung. and he said he wasnt, advising only females sting???????
Paul Sweet replied:
Hi John, yes it is true that male wasps (known as drones) cannot sting, the same is for male (drone) honey bees.
karen asked:
Hello i\'ve just gone into my shed and loads of wasps are in there. could you give me some advice as i have a small child. Thank you.
Paul Sweet replied:
Best advise is to keep your child away from the shed, keep the door closed to prevent any accidental encounters and then call a pest controller to deal with the nest.