Watch out for underground bee and hornet nests

[climbingmonkey24]

I’ve encountered bees and stuff on jobs before, but today was a first.

Arrived at the job site and parked a truck on an area of the lawn where the client had her car parked. No issues. Later in the day, go to the truck to get some water and there’s hornets buzzing and crawling all over it. Thankfully the windows were closed. The customer had a few cans of spray so we sprayed wherever the bees were on the truck until it was clear enough for someone to be able to quickly get in there and move the truck out and then we used the garden hose to wash it off.

Either it was parked over the nest or during the work process they got disturbed, but the way they were swarming that one truck led us to believe the nest had to be somewhere near it. Ended up finding multiple holes in the yard that looked like it could be where the nest was or multiple nests.

 

[RyanCafferky]

This time of year we always encounter ground nests. Usually it happens when I’m up in the tree and I look down and see the ground crew getting hammered by the little buggers. Then the fun part comes when I have to figure out how to get out of the tree without getting stung.

 

[ATH]

I keep a can of spray in the truck...have found them several times. A couple of memorable:

1) Root collar excavation - found some at the base of the tree. I was running the AirKnife, but my helper got the brunt of those. I think I only got hit once.
2) Was taking some trees out at a McDonalds they were renovating. I got hit 3-4 times bam, bam, bam - start running across the parking lot shedding the chaps. Construction (excavation mostly at that point) crew all laughing hysterically at me. I get the can of spray and they say "no, man, leave it...Steve is coming later with the excavator to dig up that area - we wanna see him find that too". It was right next to the still open drive through...I thought it best to spray them.

 

[27RMT0N]

I've been stung twice in a months time this summer, I kicked one open and managed to see it and run like hell without getting hit, and my employee got stung just the other day. I keep spray in my truck, but it's usually a ground nest you just happen upon while moving through brush, impossible to see ahead of time and VERY hard to spray and kill even if you do find it.

 

[joshuarov]

I got stung 6 times across two encounters this past week, that's a record for me :/ Seems like a population boom in several regions this year.

 

[Bart_]

Within the last two weeks a nest of smaller wasps formed under the foundation of my neighbour's house, under the garage pad. Hot day there was a wasp flying in or out every couple of seconds! Constant stream. Sprayed and foamed the hole shut.

 

[oldoakman]

A couple weeks age on a very hot humid day I was pruning a huge Water Oak and was soaking wet with sweat. About midafternoon I noticed honeybees seemed to be attracted to me. I had about a dozen on me for about an hour or more. only one stung me and that was because she got under my shirt sleeve and couldn't get out. I have never had that happen before.

 

[Burrapeg]

I went to one of my favourite trees for a rec climb a couple years ago, a tree I had just climbed some months before with no issues, tossed my rope bag and backpack down in exactly the same place, and the little bastards had moved into a hole in the ground under one of the tree's big roots right where I always sat. Got stung at least a dozen times when they came swarming up through the rope, and quite a few of them right up my pants legs. I ran off some distance to get away from them and had to lay down for over an hour to let the dizziness fade. While I was laying there waiting to recover, it was a sobering thought to recall I had an uncle who died of hornet stings while mowing his yard. Needless to say, I no longer make a habit of climbing solo anywhere remote without telling someone where I am going.

 

[evo]

My most comical was cutting brush on the ground, I thought I backed into an electric fence. I was wearing my mesh visor down and had a bald face hornet get under it going for my eyes. Damned thing got me 3 times on the cheek while I’m trying to smack it but just hitting the face screen. I’m sure it looked very comical

 

[oldoakman]

I hate those bastards.

 

[Bart_]

When I was a kid I hedge trimmer vibrated a hidden hornet nest at my grandpa's, first time operating a trimmer, and I remember in slow motion feeling the pain, looking down at the hornets repeatedly stabbing their butts into my thigh as the trimmer spun down. Three different locations simultaneously. Didn't want to chop myself up with the trimmer! I had open flesh wounds for at least a week that changed to whitish scar tissue for the longest time. Eventually the scar tissue disappeared, Didn't i.d. the type of hornets.

edit - as I recall I lost the feeling in the scar tissue spots. nasty venom!

Another time when I was much younger we were climbing on an old combine and I got stung. Farm instant remedy was grandma spit in her hand, grabbed some dirt, made spit mud and rubbed it into the sting - to extract the venom. I guess it was a poultice.

 

[moss]

I've been involved with two northern paper wasp nests, one bald-faced hornet nest, and one yellow-jacket ground nest in the last 3 weeks. So far so good, stung by one northern paper wasp when I leaned in working too close to the nest. I was layered with two t-shirts, wasp couldn't get the stinger fully in to my shoulder. It got me but I don't think it delivered a full dose of venom. Last year same tree, (really a shrub) had a bald-faced hornet nest, I saw it first.

Winning is noticing them first. I used a garden hose with a good spray nozzle to take out the yellow jackets and bald-faced nests. More work than using a spray can but very effective and not spreading pesticide all over everything.

Their behaviors are interesting, they are predictable. Fast movement makes them react. If you have the jump on them and make your moves slowly with ease you can take care of a situation with minimal danger of being stung.
-AJ

 

[TreeCo]

Just the other day I was riding the mower and went over an inground yellow jacket nest and didn't know it. On my return run I saw them swarming the entrance hole. There must have been a hundred at least. I'm sure a lot more.

Got lucky and didn't get a sting.

Last summer I moved some 3" pvc pipe I use in the garden that I store in the shade of the woods to keep UV off of it. There was a hole in the ground about the size of a quarter with a yellow jacket looking right at me. In an instant it flew a straight line and hit me right between eyes between eyebrows. They must see our pupils. It's like I saw it and it hit me simultaneously.

I got out of dodge.

We have a lot of inground yellow jackets where I'm at N/E of Atlanta.

 

[AP1017]

A couple weeks age on a very hot humid day I was pruning a huge Water Oak and was soaking wet with sweat. About midafternoon I noticed honeybees seemed to be attracted to me. I had about a dozen on me for about an hour or more. only one stung me and that was because she got under my shirt sleeve and couldn't get out. I have never had that happen before.

Had a similar situation about 2 weeks ago as well. Humid, 95 degrees, soaked with sweat, in a white oak. Only one or two honey bees at a time would land on my shirt. Lasted a couple hours. Didn't get stung though. Never had even heard of this happening before. Assume they were getting water out of my shirt. IDK.

 

[southsoundtree]

Black plastic plant pots, stacked upside down with a southern or western exposure, are a great nesting spot.


I do a wasp/ hornet check as possible around this time of year.

Wasp collectors are coming to my house today.

 

[27RMT0N]

I remember a time years ago doing a removal and I was working on the ground. As the climber was going up and stripping limbs, we noticed one had a big round paper wasp nest on it. He cut the limb, it fell to the ground, we grabbed it, ran with it and tossed the limb, nest and all, through the chipper. No one got stung.

 

[Tom Dunlap]

Last Thursday I had breakfast with a couple of buddies. One found a nest that’s likely bald face hornets.

I wondered out loud when the first stinging critter would debut. This is the month to check supplies

Don’t forget to have Benadryl paired with Aerosal Bee Bomb

 

[RyanCafferky]

Had a similar situation about 2 weeks ago as well. Humid, 95 degrees, soaked with sweat, in a white oak. Only one or two honey bees at a time would land on my shirt. Lasted a couple hours. Didn't get stung though. Never had even heard of this happening before. Assume they were getting water out of my shirt. IDK.

I think they are going for the salt. I live in the woods and have certain spots where I consistently take a leak. The honeybees are all over those spots at different times of the year. We have plenty of water available for them but they know what they need and where to get it.

 

[moss]

I think they are going for the salt. I live in the woods and have certain spots where I consistently take a leak. The honeybees are all over those spots at different times of the year. We have plenty of water available for them but they know what they need and where to get it.

Lately I’ve had yellow-jackets investigating me at height in trees where I’m in relatively young wood, no possibilities of hollows containing a nest. Yellow-jackets will nest in trees when the hollows are similar enough to their preferred ground-nesting habitat. In this case I think they were after sweat/salts/minerals.
-AJ

 

[Treezybreez]

While felling a dead pine a few years ago I stood right on top of a yellow jacket nest. They quickly alerted me to my trespassing and chased me all the way to the truck. A hand full of the brutes followed me in to the truck and a bunch kept smacking the glass trying to get me. The next day I brought a camp stove and poured boiling water on the nest. Then I ate some of their larvae. It’s pretty tasty. I’ve also discovered that carpenter ant larvae is delicious and the flavor varies depending on the species of tree they live in.