Don't Let Yellowjackets
Set Up A "Sting Operation" In Your Home
Yellowjackets get their name from their yellow-and-black striped color patterns. There are about 16 species throughout the U.S. They are generally considered to be beneficial because they mainly eat other insects, many of which are pests. They are social, and live in colonies, usually making a nest of "paper," usually in underground cavities, but sometimes in bushes or wall voids or attics of buildings. Colony size may vary from a few dozen to several thousand worker wasps. Nests may contain from 300 to over 100,000 cells. Only fertilized queens live over the winter in most species.
Yellowjackets are only a problem when people get close to their nest entrance without knowing it. These wasps can sting repeatedly, and become very aggressive when defending their nest. Their sting is usually very painful and humans can develop a true allergy to their venom. Any later sting can be life threatening. The presence of these or any other stinging pest is cause for immediate concern and professional assistance should be sought at once.
Control of yellowjackets should only be undertaken by properly trained and equipped professional pest control personnel. Control is best done at night, after carefully noting the exact nest location during the day. The German Yellowjacket and the Western Yellowjacket often nests in building, and the Aerial Yellowjackets often chew through into living or work areas, posing a direct threat to occupants. After a pest controller has controlled all the adult insects from a nest in a building, the nest itself should be removed as completely as possible. If not, it may cause odor problems or attract carpet beetles which often become a secondary pest.