Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Paper Wasp Nest in Bird Feeder (video)

Posted by Kirk
I went to fill my bird feeder and found a little surprise.


~Kirk

2 comments:

Lynne at Hasty Brook said...

Do paper wasp nests stay flat on the bottom? We have a rather large one under the eaves of the shed. It looks like a large shower head. There is no reason to destroy it is there? We've left it alone and they do the same.

Kirk said...

There will probably be some variation depending on the exact species. There are 22 species of paper wasp in North America. A shower head is a good description. There is some curving in my experience but mostly at the edges. The queen builds the initial nest like you see in the video to raise a crop of workers who then take over the process of expanding the nest. Paper wasps are generally more laid back than Hornets and will leave you alone. Still, I've been stung plenty of times.If it isn't by the door to the shed you're probably fine to leave it alone. I've been stung when a nest is close to the door of a shed and I've been stung any times while rock climbing.