Wasps 1 Dac 0

[Dacotensis]

I admit I didn't see the attack coming today.

There was no problem detected in the area 20 minutes earlier.
Poor recon?

I was straining under 90 pounds of tote box full of goodies as I stacked it higher on the others.
I knew I was mortally hit and the swearing at the little %}^}* made my pain much less it always does. You know...

I took a dart to my jugular right behind my left ear.
Inside of 20 seconds my head had a couple of sharp piercing pains directly on each side of my scalp.
I felt a little woozy. Good local swelling. And slight numbness in my neck. Not unlike when my hand falls asleep.

It kind of freaked me out.
I found it hard to swallow for about 10 minutes and my throat was super dry.

I've taken a few elbows by guys who out weigh me by 120lbs and this was pretty similar in feeling to the head.

I never had a reaction like this before and I'm thinking it happened because it was right on my artery.

I lived to tell and concede temporary victory to them. The collective them. Even though I only succumbed to One.

I will be calling on Whiskey Wish for what my plan of attack should be.

I don't like losing. It's my yard dangit.
Do they serve any purpose?


I was on to the phone pdql to my RN girlfriend.
She talked me down from the edge.

All this is Karma for razzing Calgary Dave today no doubt

[coolpete1]

last year i opened a garage door not knowing there was a hive attached to the other side of it , 20 or so stings to the head later i escaped . i hate wasps.
i did get to test out my new 20 gauge shotgun on the hive after though.

[Badgerbadger]

I have Claritins in all vehicles, bathrooms, kitchen, and both motorcycle bags. I find they help head off the swelling as they mitigate the histamine reaction.

You might want to have some laying around.

Glad you came through it ok.

[waterninja]

Good luck in this war Dac. I have located 4 wasp nests on my property this year and have got rid of 2 of the smaller ones. I have a plan for the 3rd but 1 is in an impregnable location.
I also wonder what use they serve. Only species that I will target to kill every time I see one. Hate the little b@$+ard$.
Always have a supply of Beneydryll around just in case.

[Twisted Canuck]

OH that sucks!! A couple years back my youngest daughter got hit bad climbing a tree at campground, and bailed. Big concussion for her. My answer is pretty simple, we made a video of it on a hike one day (not great quality, but we were thankful for the heavy wind!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GkunPR6xfI

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by waterninja

Good luck in this war Dac. I have located 4 wasp nests on my property this year and have got rid of 2 of the smaller ones. I have a plan for the 3rd but 1 is in an impregnable location.
I also wonder what use they serve. Only species that I will target to kill every time I see one. Hate the little b@$+ard$.
Always have a supply of Beneydryll around just in case.

Proper recon, flamethrower and it is over.

[Wild&Free]

Wasps and hornets share a common ancestor with ants, by many 10s of millions of years. They are scavengers and carrion eaters as well as predators. they do what they've always done for countless years.

my prefered method of dealing with them is flammable aresols and a bbq lighter.

[Kim473]

Does bear spray work on those suckers?
Allways have a supply of allergy meds on hand.

I wonder if a few trillion of those suckers could end all the conflicts overseas? (New weapon of mass surrendering).

[waterninja]

After 2nd thought I should have mentioned one thing that wasps are good for. They do leave behind some very impressive nests that show some amassing constuction abilities. I have about a dozen in good shape that I find ornamental.
Also when out hunting I like to find a small one to keep in truck as a good luck charm.

[pikeslayer22]

Could be allergies to the bite. That's exactly what happens to me and after comes the shot in the butt from the epi-pen and a trip to the hospital for an intravenous...no fun!

[averagejoe]

I like brakleen for getting rid of nests. It seems to drop them immediately and if you spray the entrance of the nest they fall to the ground unable to fly away. Worked wonders for a group that was building a nest in the crack of the shed. Just gave it an extra spray every 30 seconds to keep things fresh and never got stung once.

With the straw you can spray a fairly impressive distance as well.

[Dacotensis]

Originally Posted by Twisted Canuck

OH that sucks!! A couple years back my youngest daughter got hit bad climbing a tree at campground, and bailed. Big concussion for her. My answer is pretty simple, we made a video of it on a hike one day (not great quality, but we were thankful for the heavy wind!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GkunPR6xfI

That is some great father daughter bonding time right there TC.

Originally Posted by catnthehat

Did you take a knee to think things through? Sorry Dac, coulldn't resist!
Cat

You can come over and poke the hive and we will see who can move quicker

The neck is actually still a little tender today.
I must be getting soft in my middle age, as I've never had a reaction in the past.

Is it all down hill at 43?

Well there's no Carrion for them to eat around here and all the blossoms have been here and gone.
No livestock in town. It's sherwood park and we have bylaws...

No. They are on borrowed time.

[catnthehat]

Originally Posted by Dacotensis

You can come over and poke the hive and we will see who can .

uh, nope think I'll pass on the offer!!
Cat

[Kurt505]

Sorry about your luck Dac, but excellent narrative skills. Very entertaining story, I hope you get one up on them!

[Leeper]

I've watched black hornets hovering over the grass and grabbing mosquitoes which flew up. I have also watched them and yellowjackets plucking aphids off the apple trees. Of course, they will also eat an applewhen they are ripe. Although they often seem to have a malevolent demeanor, they seem to be not all bad. Just like most other things.
Nonetheless, when I see a nest in the shop, it gets sprayed. Leeper

[score]

There are primarily two stinging wasps here that I know of. Yellow Jackets and the Black Hornets. The Yellow Jackets are most common and largely more aggressive, but both should be killed unless you are some kind of masochistic PETA type.

Both are predatory meat eaters that while they'll eat dead stuff, they seek out and kill anything they can, primarily insects. But, they don't differentiate between the good or the bad ones.

They are simply a pest that can kill a human but most human's aren't at risk of sever reaction when stung. **If your kids haven't been stung before be prepared with the proper antihistamines and monitor the situation. They can be fatal for some people.**

Be aware and watch them if you seem to have a lot. You will locate the nest eventually. When you do wait till dark when they are all inside and inactive then soak nest with "Wasp Blaster" or the like from Canadian Tire or wherever. Try to spray into the nest opening if you can. Done for that one but there could be others. Usually is somewhere.

Some years are worse than others. Nasty things that should be eradicated IMO. The extent to which they pollinate is limited if at all and can be left to the more gentle and more abundant pollinators.