Yellow jackets?

[firstfrost]

So, we have some of these guys living in the siding under the window on the second floor. From my brief reading on the web, if they're not going to be a danger due to the chance of stinging (which was no doubt worst as I stuck my head out the window to get this picture), "do nothing, they'll die off in the winter and they don't come back to the same nest" seems to be a feasible option. But if they're actually going to be causing damage by nibbling holes in the house, then presumably I should worry more. (For a while, I thought they were bees, which would have been more of a problem, because they don't leave and then you have wax and honey stuffed into your walls...). Does anyone have more authoritative-sounding opinions than "stuff I just read on the internet"? :)

Comments

Allergies

[ringrose.livejournal.com]

It does mean I'm less likely to come by your house. I've been stung three times over my life, and the welt's been bigger each time.

Re: Allergies

[firstfrost.livejournal.com]

They're not actually getting into the house, which I would consider a stinging hazard. I expect the flowers in the front yard are a bigger hazard of attracting stinging-things near people, as I've frequently seen bees there and never actually seen the yellowjackets around when I was outside.

[pekmez.livejournal.com]

I don't know how the nest mechanism really works, but I recall a time when we had a nest when I was growing up (in high school-ish) and it *did* wind up with them finding a way inside the house. Maybe it was a coincidentally bad nest placement, or maybe the nest grew and wanted another exit on the other side. (We left on a vacation and had exterminators deal while we were gone,
and I remember being extra glad to be leaving on that particular vacation...)

We had 'em

[fredrickegerman.livejournal.com]

When we first moved into our place. They indeed went away after the first frost of autumn [sorry...].

But the initial discovery definitely involved sticking my head up against the inside wall to listen to the nest on the other side, and confirm that there were indeed a whole mess of 'em in there.

I stuffed copper scrubby pad stuff into the gap so other beasties would be less tempted to crawl into the same gap. No idea how effective this is for bugs, actually, but it'll at least keep rodents from enlarging a gap that's otherwise hidden under the siding.

Re: We had 'em

[firstfrost.livejournal.com]

I think they're doing something crazy and desolid to get into that hole. The corner in the bottom left of the picture? That's where they're going in and out. I can't see how even a bug manages to fit, but I'm not very worried about mice running up the side of the house and into the window; I figure they have enough opportunities to try and nibble through on the first floor or the basement, if they really care.