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Why Are These Stinging Insects So Mad?

Late summer and early fall are notorious times for folks to get stung by hornets, wasps, and yellow jackets. Insects that were relatively oblivious to our presence during the spring and summer (unless directly provoked) suddenly become more aggressive, as temperatures begin to dip a little. But why is this?

It just so happens that, like for some of us humans, wasps bad behavior can be tentatively blamed on their family history. Let us explain: Every year these creatures start their colonies from scratch. A single young queen will emerge from winter dormancy to build a new nest by herself. Her solitude lasts until she has raised her first brood of worker daughters, which then, willingly take over caring for subsequent rounds of eggs, larvae, and pupae. And this is not a brief task, as brood after brood comes into play. In fact, there may be as many as 1,000 workers raised in one summer, though for most of that time you wouldn’t know it.

We don’t notice them too much because all those workers are dedicated to feeding all those hungry mouths! And the young ones need lots of protein since these newly hatched larvae must undergo full-body metamorphoses, first into pupae, and then into flying (and stinging) adults. Species such as the bald-faced hornet and the German yellow jacket, hunt for caterpillars, flies, crickets and other crop pests. Other yellow jackets scavenge protein from dead insects and carrion. Once food is found, these workers must chew the source into a paste for the insatiable young ones. And, in all this labor, these faithful workers don’t get much time to eat for themselves.

So, it stands to reason that, when the last brood is raised and the new fertile queens fly away, all those worker females are just a tad bit grumpy. And can you blame them? So, at the end of summer, and in the early fall, these stinging insects seem to be interested in one thing–eating. And since their favorite foods are sugary foods that they can get from humans, they begin hanging around us at much higher numbers. Yes, the fact is, these flying, stinging insects ruin many picnics in the late summer and early fall with their aggressive appetite for sweet soda, sticky candy, and all things sweet.

The moral of this article is, if you do not want to deal with tired, worn-out, hungry, stinging insects on your property this season, reach out to a professional pest control company, especially if you notice nests. And, as always, if you’re in our service area, the experts here at Active Pest Control are standing by to help.

Why Are These Stinging Insects So Mad? in Georgia

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