It’s the tale-end of our Sacramento summer when yellow jackets—not the best company at any time of year—become particularly bold and aggressive. As we wrote last year, that’s because by the time end of summer arrives, they are voraciously hungry and will do almost anything to get sugar:
“Both yellowjackets and paper wasps start building their nests in early spring, when a single queen emerges from winter hibernation as the weather warms. From spring to late summer, they forage primarily for protein, usually in the form of other insects, to feed their growing colonies. Later in the summer and early fall, the colony may have grown to as many as 15,000 individuals. Large amounts of sugar are needed to feed the queens and workers, and this is when they become more troublesome to humans. It’s not uncommon for swarms of yellowjackets or wasps to aggressively forage around trash cans, dumpsters or human picnics and barbeques, where they may crawl into soda cans and sting when the unsuspecting victim takes a drink.”
The current issue of PCT Magazine online has a great article about increased yellow jacket activity this time of year, how to spot nests and methods pest control professionals use to eradicate them. But don’t tackle this job yourself unless you’ve had experience: hungry, swarming yellow jackets are no joke, and an attack could even be fatal. Read our blog for more about this.