There are many different pests that bother us during the summer months. This is a time when the ecosystem is alive and there are lots of insects out there. One of the most feared insects is the wasp. This stinging insect can hit you with a painful sting if you find yourself at the wrong end of one. Wasps are fairly quick, and some species can sting repeatedly when threatened. Keeping wasps away from your home and loved ones is important. So, if you’re having a problem with wasps, it’s important to call a Broken Arrow exterminator. In this article, let’s take a good look at wasps and how they work.
Some wasps use their stingers to hunt. They can paralyze insects or spiders, and this prey becomes food for their young. Adult wasps often feed on nectar and other sugary foods to maintain their energy. These carbohydrates help fuel their activity. But developing wasp larvae need protein, and that’s where hunted insects come in.
For example, a female solitary wasp may create a nest and hunt small spiders or insects using her stinger. She places paralyzed prey in a nest cell with an egg, then seals the cell. Once the egg hatches, the larva consumes the prey. It then develops through its immature stages and eventually emerges as an adult wasp. Social wasps, such as paper wasps and yellowjackets, have a different nesting system: workers bring insect prey back to feed developing larvae in a shared colony.
In the winter months, wasps have to survive the cold. For many social wasps, the workers and males die as the season ends, while newly mated queens find protected places to overwinter. These places may include sheltered gaps, spaces under tree bark, or openings around a house, including behind siding. They remain relatively inactive until warmer weather returns. In spring, surviving queens emerge and begin establishing new colonies.
After a long winter, these queens need food and energy, but there is no reliable thirty-minute deadline for finding a flower. The timing of survival depends on the wasp, its condition, and the environment. Sometimes an overwintering queen sheltered near a heated part of a house becomes active during winter and finds her way indoors. We get calls about wasps appearing inside homes during the colder months. While that can definitely be alarming, a wasp indoors in winter does not necessarily mean there’s an active nest inside. Without suitable food and conditions, it may not survive long.
If you’re having an issue with wasps or other pests, it’s time to call a good Broken Arrow exterminator to deal with them. TermMax Pest Control can help you find a quick, effective, and affordable solution to your pest problems.
