20 December 2009
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Green Wiltshire

Wasp

Where are all the wasps?

September, the time of year when you get accosted by drunk and disorderly wasps... But not this year.

Autumn – the season of mists, mellow fruitfulness and drunken wasps…

Well, usually. But this year everything is mellow and misty but almost completely wasp free.

So where exactly have all the wasps gone?

Last year, wasps were literally everywhere. In fact the wasp population explosion was the biggest increase in the wasp population since 1997. So what's happened this year?

We caught up with Stuart Roberts, a south Wiltshire based Insect Expert to find out:

So Stuart, are there fewer wasps around this year than normal?

"Yes, I think so generally."

But why? Has it got anything to do with having one of the coldest springs since 2001?

"Well, yes. The way the life cycle of our social wasps is organised – only the mated queens hibernate. So early in the year the only wasps you're going to find around are larger than perhaps you might find comfortable. But, there aren't very many of them because they're at the reproductive stage.

Drunk and disorderly wasps

"They'll find a nest in the spring, usually in about April or May. If the weather's really bad in May, and cold, you get a high mortality rate and a lot of nest failures.

"In my experience when you get a bad May you tend not to get huge numbers of wasps later in the year. If you get a really good May and the weather allows the nests to get established than you can get some quite large numbers of wasps at the end of the year."

Why does it always seem like there are more wasps hurtling around at the end of the summer?

"Well, in September the colonies are beginning to come near to the end of the season and beginning to break down. And the workers instead of hunting for food, which is a major task, they than start looking after themselves a bit and start diving into your jam sandwiches and your fizzy drink cans."

So now you know…

And if you were thinking that not being accosted by drunk and disorderly wasps, on holiday with a sweet tooth, has been a good thing… than keep your fingers crossed for another frosty May.

last updated: 07/09/05

Have Your Say

K-L-I
I really hate wasps and I think I might be allergic so its ok for the population to be down.And also did you know that wasps kill worker bees? And if the worlds population of bees died out we humans most life on earth would be dead in about 2 years?

Linda Davis
I have a wasp nest in my headge. Its been great watching it all summer. If I leave it will they come back next year?

family girl
how do you keep wasps away from treehouses in a weeping willow tree? they are every where but i cant see any nest ?? any suggestions?

Anthony Alleyne
Why are there so many 'flying' Daddy Long Legs this year? I think I remember someone saying it was because there weren't many wasps around as wasps eat the daddy longlegs lava in the spring, but the Spring was too cold for wasps this year. Is this true? Also, I heard that the life expectancy of a Daddy Long Legs is only 24hrs. Is this true too?

john
have you ever seen a wasp kill him self in a bottle

Laverne Inns
How do you keep wasps away form plum trees?

valerie coombes
we live in the countryside near to gatwick.we are seeing giant 40mm wasp in our garden .HELP!

waspishness
this is the beginning of may in scotland and there seems to be millions of wasps agoing aropound.. last year was heaven hardly any but this year i can hardly get out into the garden in what is usualy a time of wasp free bliss r i hate them and i would love to kill them but i am a vegetarian and it makes me feel really guilty on the occassions when i have battered them to death with a magazine!!! but on the thousands of occasions i have NOt battered them they just seem to say ha ha big fearty and get all there friends round more...lol

elaine says
Good thinking - here in liverpool just got shut of 6 furious wasps from bathroom, they were HUGE, what's going on here - it's only end of march. Not to mention freezing temperatures. Regards....

lizzie, scotland
have just seen a huge wasp in my flat! it's the either second this year or the first one was persistant and has come back... surely they should all be dead now? (not that i didn't take a lot of pleasure watching it repeatedly fly into the lamp). does this mean i've got a queen settling in??? eugh!

rory stuart
i love wasps .... they always scare my wife so i dont have to myself. once i ate a wasp mmmmmmmmmm rory stuart wilmslow high school manchester T10GM

Alan
Yes it's all a bit weird Sitting in my office Nov 14 with the window open and in flies a wasp there being almost none this summer

paul 33 in scotland
hi folks it`s november 11 6.30 in the evening and low and behold as i was sittin on my pc a wasp just walked out from behind my speaker and had a wee walk all over my mouse, i thought they were all dead. i hate them too so it didn`t last long.

chris (12)
last year i killd 36 nest this year i have not seen eney but thes smeller wasps.

angie dixon
i am glad about the calm, we seem to get a nest up in the roof,one year the noise sounded like short/cir., electricity,how do we deal with problem.

Alan
Almost no wasps this year in Scotland and we didnt have a May very different from any other and certainly not cold!!! What's going on - not that I have a sense of loss

Aimeé Thanatogenos
I can confirm that we have had no requests at all, this year, to embalm pet wasps.

patsimps @aol.com
when do the wasps die or our they alive all year round as we have a wasp nest in the loaft. what can we do?

Karen
I live in the United States, in the state of Illinois. I don't remember OUR spring being frosty. How come WE don't have any wasps this fall???????

Daniel (age 14)
alright no wasps!!!! lol they in ur loft they in my m8s back yard too.

Smudge
There all roung Graeme Plum trees

iwillnevertell
YAY!!! less wasps!!!!

Dave G, Wraxal
I know where they all are, they have moved into our loft! Now if only they payed rent....

Brian Poole, Calne
...or - bump off all the big wasps you come across as they emerge from hibernation! We dispatched a total of 7 queens who had over-wintered in our loft. Seems harsh, I know, but we got so cheesed off with the little blighters last year! Best regards