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What Are Stinging Insects?
Their name is pretty self-explanatory, but unfortunately, it doesn’t tell you everything you need to know about this classification of insects. You probably have a good understanding that insects like bees, wasps, and yellow jackets fall into the stinging insect class. However, what you might not know is that ants also fall into this classification. That’s right, ants, wasps, hornets, bees, and yellow jackets all belong to an order known as Hymenoptera. Pretty strange when you think about it, but you want to know something even more interesting?
Most stinging insects aren’t even considered aggressive or a threat at all. Many of them are even considered beneficial pollinators. In Syracuse, you’ll end up dealing with a variety of stinging insects as a property owner. Here are the most common: paper wasps, yellow jackets, bald-faced hornets, honeybees, and carpenter bees. You might have commonly heard people in Syracuse referred to stinging insects like hornets, but the truth of the matter is hornets don’t really exist in our region. The bald-faced hornet is actually nothing more than a yellow jacket.
Whatever the situation, these are just some interesting, yet pertinent, facts about stinging insects. If you want to successfully eliminate these critters from your property and keep them gone, you’ll need to learn everything you possibly can about them. Here are some other things you are going to need to know along the way. Sear them into your mind because they will be pertinent for effective elimination.
Identifying Stinging Insets
While insects with stingers fall into the stinging insect classification, it doesn’t mean they all have the same traits. Yes, some of the traits might be similar, but learning the habits of the critters will help you identify and eliminate them. There are two different distinct ways that you can go about identifying stinging insects. The two easiest ways are the appearance and location of the nest along with the appearance of the insect itself. Remember these things because they will be pertinent for telling what type of critter you are dealing with.
Paper Wasps
The paper wasp is a mid-level aggressive stinging insect that generally won’t be a threat until contact is made. You touch the bee or get too close to its nest and it’ll respond in kind. The nest these critters produce is usually pretty distinctive as they are grayish, round in shape, and have a honeycomb pattern. These nests are usually found under eaves, under hangs, and interestingly enough, on fences. The covers the nest and location of the nest, but it doesn’t cover the bee or the appearance of the bee. And, this is where things can get interesting. There are actually different classifications of the Paper Wasp.
European Paper Wasp
The first Paper wasp that you’ll find yourself dealing with in Syracuse is the European Paper Wasp. This is one that is striped yellow and black with an orange antenna. They are somewhat similar to that of the yellowjacket but larger. They are so large that their hind legs will dang while in flight.
Northern Paper Wasp
The Northern Paper Wasp, on the other hand, is one with a brown body and dark orange spots. It also has thin yellow and white stripes on the abdomen areas.
The Yellowjacket
The Yellowjacket could be classified as a bee with a high level of aggression. It usually isn’t active until the late Summer and early Fall. During these months, the bee will be particularly aggressive, as this is when their colonies reach their maximum sizes. They’ll be so big that they’ll literally be pushing each other out into the open. Speaking of the nest, these are ones that are usually found in attics, under porches, and in dense bushes. That being said, there are some species that do prefer to nest in the ground.
These stinging insects have black and yellow stripes on their stomachs with heads and antennae that are solid black. These guys are extremely fast flyers with their ability to tuck their legs into their bodies and glide against the air.
The Bald-Faced Hornet
Here is another one with a high level of aggression, especially during the late summer and early fall, similar to that of the yellowjacket. That being said, that’s about the only thing they have in common. These stinging insects construct their nest in trees, bushes, and sometimes the sides of buildings. There are even times when you’ll find these nests in undisturbed tall grass. You’ll know immediately if you come across one of these nests because it will resemble that of an inverted tear-drop.
As for the bee itself, it is one with a smooth black and white body. It has a slightly larger upper head with a thorax and a stinger located in the abdomen.
The Honeybee
Most Syracuse residents are familiar with the area’s homemade honey. There isn’t much that is as delicious. It goes exceptionally well with coffee or spread across a hot roll. Well, it is the honeybee that is responsible for the production of this product. They only possess a low to mid-level aggression, but some breeds have been bred for pure gentleness. These bees are about as close to sweethearts as a stinging insect can get.
If you know anything about honey production then you likely already have a good understanding of what these bees’ colonies look like. They erect extensive combs that are made of wax and can commonly be found in wall cavities of hollow trees or rock crevices. They are round in shape and somewhat resemble that of a honeycomb. Unlike other stinging insects in Syracuse, these bees can survive for numerous years. This is because they spend all summer producing honey that they live on during the winter when food is scarce. Pretty ingenious when you think about it.
The bee itself is orange/yellow with a brown fuzzy body that’s made up of a head, thorax, and abdomen stinger.
The Carpenter Bee
The carpenter bees are known for their uncanny ability to bore perfectly shaped 3/8 inch holes into wood siding, fascia boards, and decks. They usually do this during the spring month and what’s even more interesting is they don’t eat the wood. Instead, it’s like they spit it out. They bore out these openings so they can use them for rearing their young. The bees are large insects with yellow and black fuzzy thoraxes. While this is the case, their abdomens are hairless. It is the male of the species that have yellow spots on their face, which makes them even easier to distinguish.
Are Stinging Insects A Threat?
Given their names, you think that stinging insects pose a major threat. This is not entirely the case at all. Not all these insects are aggressive. Most won’t even sting until you touch them or invade their colony. As you also learned from above, the larger the nest, the bigger the threat. As the colony increases, so do the aggression threat. Solitary bees that forage alone don’t tend to sting until they are touched, but this isn’t entirely the case with colony species.
While this might not seem like a problem, it can be problematic for those species that build ground nests. You can easily walk upon one of these nests without even knowing it. These nests can be hard to spot are usually larger because of this. Yellowjackets probably pose the biggest threat of all, as they can sting multiple times, which sometimes causes allergic reactions that might lead to anaphylactic shock.
Why Are Stinging Insects On My Property?
Stinging insects are what are known as opportunistic creatures. This means when given the opportunity, they will build their colonies wherever applicable.
How Can You Get Rid Of Stinging Insects?
Stinging insects might not sting until you invade their territory, but as you can imagine, this makes elimination even all the more difficult. You can eliminate the critter if you can’t get near it. This is why these are usually situations best left to the pros. Our Syracuse offices have the tools, knowledge, and know-how to deal with these critters in the safest and most effective manner. The best plan of attack for someone attempting to remove the problem themselves would be to attack the problem at night. This is when the nest will be least active. If you are lucky, you might even catch them when most of the members are sleeping.
Are Treatments Safe?
If there is one thing we pride ourselves on it is our dedication to the industry. Pest management isn’t just a job for us. It’s a way of life. We take everything about the industry seriously, especially safety. While we offer greener and eco-friendly treatments, there are times when we have to utilize pesticides. Pesticides have proven to be an effective means of pest management over the years. This is why they will likely continue to be used for centuries and centuries. The only problem is, pesticides are dangerous. Regardless, we are always careful in the approach we take.
Whether it is the application of pesticides or eco-friendly treatments, we do everything we can to ensure safe handling and administering of treatments. We only utilize EPA-certified techs to administer treatments. While pesticides might not be safe, we make sure we take the safest precautions possible.
How Much Will Treatment Cost?
Given the cost of pest management these days this is a question we get all the time. This is completely understandable. Times are tough and people need to be frugal. When it comes to price, we cannot say straight up how much you’ll end up paying. This is because there are all kinds of things that can determine the overall cost of your treatment. Such as:
- The type of insect you are dealing with
- The size of the house and property
- The actual size of the nest
- The location of the nest (Whether it’s on the outside or inside, first-story or second-story)
We might not be able to give you an upfront price, but we can guarantee there will be no hidden fees. We’ll give you a written quote right up front and when all said and done, that’s what you’ll pay.
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