Is it just me or are wasps everywhere at the moment? We would usually have a few in and around the house and garden in mid to late August and into early September but never as many as I've seen around today. Kids were in and out the back doors all day and I'm sure I swatted out/killed about 20 wasps.
All the neighbours have been on about it as well so I'm assuming there are a fair few nests around.
Anyone else notice many or is this a local phenomenon?
Kill them......WITH FIRE....!!!
Was stung last year for first time in about 25 years. Forgot how sore it actually is.
Have killed a right few in last couple of weeks. Got to the stage where we dont even open windows in the house.
I have not seen any wasps yet
Quote from: clarshack on August 01, 2014, 09:01:51 PM
Was stung last year for first time in about 25 years. Forgot how sore it actually is.
Have killed a right few in last couple of weeks. Got to the stage where we dont even open windows in the house.
me too (maybe nearer 35 years) last Friday - sore as f**k for 5 mins then nothing
5 year old son got stung too on wed past
Getting tortured in armagh, heard on the wireless though that they are down due to a late frost.
Quote from: CD on August 01, 2014, 06:05:16 PM
Is it just me or are wasps everywhere at the moment? We would usually have a few in and around the house and garden in mid to late August and into early September but never as many as I've seen around today. Kids were in and out the back doors all day and I'm sure I swatted out/killed about 20 wasps.
All the neighbours have been on about it as well so I'm assuming there are a fair few nests around.
Anyone else notice many or is this a local phenomenon?
Yes i have never seen as many wasps as i have this year, i lifted the lid of the bin and there was at least 500 in the bin. I have killed about 100 wasps in the last week alone...def seems to be a lot more this year than previous
Bastards. Leave them alone.
Quote from: Tony Baloney on August 01, 2014, 11:35:41 PM
b**tards. Leave them alone.
Why is it ok to kill wasps/ flies etc and not ok to kill cats/dogs etc
God's creatures and all that
I'm not really feared of much, but wasps scare the bejaysus out of me.
The wife got stung on the top of her arse yesterday ;D
Their enfluence is becoming intolerable. I blame Palin and her tea party.
Cork people pronounce "wasp" to rhyme with "grasp", not rhyming with the "gosp" in "gospel", as normal people do.
I'd have put that in the "Hmmm, that's interesting" thread but I didn't think it was interesting enough. I think it's just about interesting enough for here. Maybe not. Let me know.
Cork people aren't normal then, eh? Lol
Quote from: Tony Baloney on August 02, 2014, 07:29:55 PM
The wife got stung on the top of her arse yesterday ;D
rule 1! ;D
Hmmmph, yiz have nothing to fear from our wee European wasp. Take yourself to the forests and mountains of Japan and have a run in with our wee buzzers with their big cousins.
The Asian hornet is a vicious bastard which kills people. They usually hunt in wee groups and God help anything/anyone that pisses them off.
Quote from: Hardy on August 03, 2014, 02:52:53 PM
Cork people pronounce "wasp" to rhyme with "grasp", not rhyming with the "gosp" in "gospel", as normal people do.
I'd have put that in the "Hmmm, that's interesting" thread but I didn't think it was interesting enough. I think it's just about interesting enough for here. Maybe not. Let me know.
I think some Down folk are the same.
My uncle used to tell tales of a man with a lisp who was always the first to see a wasp.
'Mind that whaasspppp' he'd have said.
The wasp trap worked a treat - they're fighting to get into it and drowning in huge numbers - just need to make about ten more of them! The wee bleeders are everywhere - have to keep every window in the house closed at the moment. The nest appears to be in a neighbour's garden. loads of elderly folk around here who don't use their gardens so I suppose there are nests all over the shop. Annoying for those of us who have kids!
Is it possible to get any sort of screening for doors and windows in Ireland - similar to what we'd have here?
Most windows in ireland are hinged Puck which makes it hard to fit screens. US windows are nearly always sliders so screens can be fitted easily.
Our ones brought home one of those magnetic strip screen doors and use it on the back door at home at times.
The only option is to retro fit the material yourself to the window
If the odd wasp makes you nervous, just know that it could be worse. ..
Schmidt sting pain scale
http://scienceblogs.com/retrospectacle/2007/05/16/schmidt-pain-index-which-sting/ (http://scienceblogs.com/retrospectacle/2007/05/16/schmidt-pain-index-which-sting/)
Got stung earlier. Wasn't even trying to shoo it or anything. Just minding my own business having a cup of tea and the wee f**k got me on the knuckle.
Wheelie bin out the back is full of them. Whats the best way to get rid ? Doubt the bin man will lift the bin next week if there's hundreds of them floating about.
As CD said earlier a nightmare if you have young kids.
Quote from: Ulick on August 07, 2014, 04:51:08 PM
Got stung earlier. Wasn't even trying to shoo it or anything. Just minding my own business having a cup of tea and the wee f**k got me on the knuckle.
There may have been under lying issues on this one Ulick, it's probably nothing you've done, I would imagine Gary The Wasp has had a rough upbringing and is probably rebelling against the hive.
Quote from: Ulick on August 07, 2014, 04:51:08 PM
Got stung earlier. Wasn't even trying to shoo it or anything. Just minding my own business having a cup of tea and the wee f**k got me on the knuckle.
Maybe he didn't like Fenians...lol ;)
Quote from: hardstation on August 16, 2019, 09:14:02 PM
Fcukin b**tards!
A lot of the hoors about this year. Wee fella got stung on Sunday
Serious amount of them around ours at the moment. Had 8 of them on the bathroom window at one time today. Luckily they aren't the quickest and are easily killed.
Cowardly bastard
Nothing cowardly about it. Wasps are a pest and a nuisance. Just let the house stay infested with them? Is it cowardly to set mouse traps?
Quote from: Rich Ricci on August 16, 2019, 10:01:12 PM
Nothing cowardly about it. Wasps are a pest and a nuisance. Just let the house stay infested with them? Is it cowardly to set mouse traps?
For wasps??
Quote from: playwiththewind1st on August 16, 2019, 10:14:13 PM
Quote from: Rich Ricci on August 16, 2019, 10:01:12 PM
Nothing cowardly about it. Wasps are a pest and a nuisance. Just let the house stay infested with them? Is it cowardly to set mouse traps?
For wasps??
Yeah that's it.
They're looking a place to hibernate, as it's getting near the end of season.
Water in jar jam, jam around the top will sort them out.
Quote from: BennyCake on August 16, 2019, 11:52:18 PM
They're looking a place to hibernate, as it's getting near the end of season.
Water in jar jam, jam around the top will sort them out.
I don't believe in killing them. Show them out the window
Quote from: hardstation on August 17, 2019, 12:03:50 AM
Quote from: Tony Baloney on August 16, 2019, 11:59:05 PM
Quote from: BennyCake on August 16, 2019, 11:52:18 PM
They're looking a place to hibernate, as it's getting near the end of season.
Water in jar jam, jam around the top will sort them out.
I don't believe in killing them. Show them out the window
Nah. The day they stop stinging folk for no reason is the day they get that kind of respect from me. Death will do them for now.
Wasps generally don't sting at random, i.e until mid August comes, then the kamikaze instinct takes over.
Why is it ok to kill a wasp and not ok to shoot a lion. Discuss.
If a lion comes into your bedroom then it is OK to shoot him too, although I wouldn't suggest hitting him with a rolled up newspaper.
Quote from: Fionntamhnach on August 17, 2019, 09:50:15 AM
Hardly seen a wasp this summer until the start of this month. Not quite overwhelmed with them yet, but as MS says above, we're now hitting the time of year where they get easily quite touchy.
Wasps - natures little b*stards. >:(
Put out a plate with some jam or sugary water or whatever in it. That's all they're after. The queens have stopped laying eggs, the nest social order is breaking down and they don't have to gather other insects any more to feed the new larvae. They'll all be dead soon anyway except for the overwintering queens.
Quote from: J70 on August 17, 2019, 12:20:00 PM
Put out a plate with some jam or sugary water or whatever in it. That's all they're after. The queens have stopped laying eggs, the nest social order is breaking down and they don't have to gather other insects any more to feed the new larvae. They'll all be dead soon anyway except for the overwintering queens.
There is something to be said for a distraction like this at the other end of the garden.
Quote from: J70 on August 17, 2019, 12:20:00 PM
Quote from: Fionntamhnach on August 17, 2019, 09:50:15 AM
Hardly seen a wasp this summer until the start of this month. Not quite overwhelmed with them yet, but as MS says above, we're now hitting the time of year where they get easily quite touchy.
Wasps - natures little b*stards. >:(
Put out a plate with some jam or sugary water or whatever in it. That's all they're after. The queens have stopped laying eggs, the nest social order is breaking down and they don't have to gather other insects any more to feed the new larvae. They'll all be dead soon anyway except for the overwintering queens.
Never would have thought David Attenborough was member of GAA board ;) One of the wee bastards tortured me up at Solitude all day today. Dunno how I didn't get stung.
Quote from: Fionntamhnach on August 17, 2019, 12:07:32 PM
No lion has even built a nest in or near my garden that marks it out of bounds until it's either dealt with through pest control or autumn starts to settle in
No lion has ever sneaked in to my half-drunk soft drink can and then started attacking me when I needed a sip.
Lions don't land on your food on the kitchen worktop, or hang around your bins.
A lion can't hurt you when it's dead.
You can usually see a lion on the seat of your chair before you sit down on it.
Lions don't tend to go on suicide missions against humans in August/September/early October.
A lioness will not produce tens of thousands of offspring in her lifetime that a queen wasp is capable of.
Shooting a lion as a trophy is frowned upon, shooting a lion that is a predator to livestock should ideally not be the first resort to dealing with them. Shooting a lion when one is an immediate danger to yourself or others around you is acceptable albeit usually reluctant and rather it didn't happen. Shooting a wasp with a firearm is (a) unlikely to do much good, and (b) somewhat of an overkill - especially if you're using your Uzi or AR-15.
Finally, lions are presently categorised in conversation statuses internationally as a vulnerable species whose historical distribution was far more widespread than it is today, where the number of lions in the wild are estimated to have plummeted in the last several decades. OTOH wasps are anything but vulnerable, and have been a significant problem when introduced into new ecological areas e.g. New Zealand.
That's fair enough on lions. But dogs can be annoying, I'm going to kill sone dogs. Even cute cuddly ones.
Quote from: Itchy on August 17, 2019, 11:05:44 AM
Why is it ok to kill a wasp and not ok to shoot a lion. Discuss.
Lions don't wear Kilkenny jerseys
Got one of these and found it to be very effective.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00HFDGMNO/ref=dp_prsubs_1
Also useful to have a check around the house and grounds to see if you can spot their nest and call in Rentokil to do their job. Surprising where they can make a nest and over winter before attacking the next year. I had them going in and out to a roof space above a bay window through a small hole between wall and roof. Rentokil gassed them and sealed them in with the gas, no bother since.
Quote from: J70 on August 17, 2019, 12:20:00 PM
Quote from: Fionntamhnach on August 17, 2019, 09:50:15 AM
Hardly seen a wasp this summer until the start of this month. Not quite overwhelmed with them yet, but as MS says above, we're now hitting the time of year where they get easily quite touchy.
Wasps - natures little b*stards. >:(
Put out a plate with some jam or sugary water or whatever in it. That's all they're after. The queens have stopped laying eggs, the nest social order is breaking down and they don't have to gather other insects any more to feed the new larvae. They'll all be dead soon anyway except for the overwintering queens.
An all out bender with no responsibilities before calling it a day. It'd be great to go out in the same fashion.