In article , Malcolm
writes

In article , Douglas
writes


Never have I come across (been stung by I mean) the more aggressive
species which appears later on in the summer and, according to everyone
else, stings for no apparent reason.

You've not come across it because it doesn't exist! All wasps become
more obvious in the late summer because of changes in what they are
doing. During the spring and first part of the summer, the workers are
busy gathering caterpillars, aphids, etc., to feed the young in the nest
and hardly bother with sweet things and are consequently much less
obvious as a result because they aren't coming into houses except
accidentally. Only when the rearing period is over and the colony is
beginning to break up do the wasps start to satisfy their apparent
craving for sugars, turning their attention to fruit on trees, and any
sweet foods left uncovered in houses or being eaten in the garden, at
picnics, etc.

They also seem to get dozy, whether as a result of the sugars, rotting
fruit etc, or the cooler weather, and therefore are more likely to be
sitting around somewhere where you disturb them by accident.

There are very few differences in the levels of aggressive behaviour
between the seven species of social wasps in the UK, with hornet the
largest and the Norwegian wasp the smallest. And there are none that
"stings for no apparent reason". They sting to defend themselves if
someone attacks them, exactly as you describe above. Unfortunately, few
people have your sang froid and will react immediately one lands on
them, often with painful results, whereas if they had left it alone
(again as you advise, though it is very difficult, I know), the chances
of being stung are greatly reduced. The same applies to flapping your
arms and hands to drive them away. They aren't attacking you so don't
attack them back - which as advice must be way up there in the pantheon
of "easier said than done" :-)

I remember when I learnt this lesson - at lunch time in primary school.
Friends on each side of me told me to sit still and in fact sat so
closely against me that I couldn't move if I wanted to! The buzzing as
the wasp explored my face and my ear sounded unbelievably loud. But
since then I've never bothered about them, and only been stung when I've
sat on them or been similarly 'aggressive' .... except for last year
when one made its way inside my dress. Even then, training stood me in
good stead and once it had made its presence felt by a sting, I managed
to move discreetly into the greenhouse and strip off without further
stings.

My bugbear now is people around me who go into mad flap mode when a wasp
appears and convert a perfectly calm animal into an angry one determined
to fight its corner.


--
Kay
"Do not insult the crocodile until you have crossed the river"