Wasp like insects
 

Hi not sure if these are anything to worry about but has a small garden at the front of our house with a grave driveway. In the last couple of days have noticed small holes appearing in the soil and a large number of wasp like insects. The bodies are very slimilar in colour but the abdomen is flater than a wasps - and they are not as aggressive as wasps. They hover very low to the ground. They seem fairly dozy and don't appear to attack when you try to get rid of them. Firstly are they wasps, if not what are they and how do I get rid of them!!!
Thanks,
Si

In article ,
simoncorrigan writes:
|
| Hi not sure if these are anything to worry about but has a small garden
| at the front of our house with a grave driveway. In the last couple of
| days have noticed small holes appearing in the soil and a large number
| of wasp like insects. The bodies are very slimilar in colour but the
| abdomen is flater than a wasps - and they are not as aggressive as
| wasps. They hover very low to the ground. They seem fairly dozy and
| don't appear to attack when you try to get rid of them. Firstly are
| they wasps, if not what are they and how do I get rid of them!!!

Well, they are wasps, but I suggest NOT getting rid of them!

There are a few species of wasp in the UK that can cause trouble
(mostly in genus Vespa), but hundreds of other species. Some
don't even HAVE stings! Your description makes it pretty clear
that they won't bother you.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Nick Maclaren wrote:
In article ,
simoncorrigan writes:
|
| Hi not sure if these are anything to worry about but has a small garden
| at the front of our house with a grave driveway. In the last couple of
| days have noticed small holes appearing in the soil and a large number
| of wasp like insects. The bodies are very slimilar in colour but the
| abdomen is flater than a wasps - and they are not as aggressive as
| wasps. They hover very low to the ground. They seem fairly dozy and
| don't appear to attack when you try to get rid of them. Firstly are
| they wasps, if not what are they and how do I get rid of them!!!

Well, they are wasps, but I suggest NOT getting rid of them!

There are a few species of wasp in the UK that can cause trouble
(mostly in genus Vespa), but hundreds of other species. Some
don't even HAVE stings! Your description makes it pretty clear
that they won't bother you.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.
These sound very much like a very large "colony" that I have. I left
them alone, and am glad I did, the birds love them. I've even had a
pair of woodpeckers gorging themselves.

--
All replies to this email address are deleted on receipt.

Common sense, not common market.

"Nick Maclaren" wrote in message
...

In article ,
simoncorrigan writes:
|
| Hi not sure if these are anything to worry about but has a small
garden
| at the front of our house with a grave driveway. In the last
couple of
| days have noticed small holes appearing in the soil and a large
number
| of wasp like insects. The bodies are very slimilar in colour but
the
| abdomen is flater than a wasps - and they are not as aggressive
as
| wasps. They hover very low to the ground. They seem fairly dozy
and
| don't appear to attack when you try to get rid of them. Firstly
are
| they wasps, if not what are they and how do I get rid of them!!!

Well, they are wasps,


.......... ah, well, not necessarily. :-))
There are several bees, sawflies and hoverflies that are very
wasp-like.
e.g.
http://www.bugsandweeds.co.uk/bees.html#Nomada

But, that apart, I'd endorse Mr MacLaren's response. :-))


........but I suggest NOT getting rid of them!

There are a few species of wasp in the UK that can cause trouble
(mostly in genus Vespa), but hundreds of other species. Some
don't even HAVE stings! Your description makes it pretty clear
that they won't bother you.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

--
ned

http://www.bugsandweeds.co.uk
last update 09.07.2005

"ned" wrote in message
...

"Nick Maclaren" wrote in message
...

In article ,
simoncorrigan writes:
|
| Hi not sure if these are anything to worry about but has a small
garden
| at the front of our house with a grave driveway. In the last
couple of
| days have noticed small holes appearing in the soil and a large
number
| of wasp like insects. The bodies are very slimilar in colour but
the
| abdomen is flater than a wasps - and they are not as aggressive
as
| wasps. They hover very low to the ground. They seem fairly dozy
and
| don't appear to attack when you try to get rid of them. Firstly
are
| they wasps, if not what are they and how do I get rid of them!!!

Well, they are wasps,


......... ah, well, not necessarily. :-))
There are several bees, sawflies and hoverflies that are very
wasp-like.
e.g.
http://www.bugsandweeds.co.uk/bees.html#Nomada

But, that apart, I'd endorse Mr MacLaren's response. :-))


my mother has several hundred similar looking insects on her well drained
sandy lawn. They seem to each live in a solitary burrow. I beleive from
looking at them, that they are bees not wasps.

--
Tumbleweed

email replies not necessary but to contact use;
tumbleweednews at hotmail dot com

simoncorrigan wrote:
:: Hi not sure if these are anything to worry about but has a small garden
:: at the front of our house with a grave driveway. In the last couple of
:: days have noticed small holes appearing in the soil and a large number
:: of wasp like insects. The bodies are very slimilar in colour but the
:: abdomen is flater than a wasps - and they are not as aggressive as
:: wasps. They hover very low to the ground. They seem fairly dozy and
:: don't appear to attack when you try to get rid of them. Firstly are
:: they wasps, if not what are they and how do I get rid of them!!!
:: Thanks,

1) if they are not stingers and not aggressive, why do you want to get rid
of them?
2) The house may be yours, the garden belongs to the wildlife :-p
they may be keeping something troublesome away, get rid of them and you
could be inundated with ugly, seven legged, fire-breathing bloodsuckers that
crawl down your ears at night.


--
If God had intended us to drink beer, He would have given us stomachs.

Nick Maclaren wrote:
In article ,
simoncorrigan writes:

Hi not sure if these are anything to worry about but has a small
garden at the front of our house with a grave driveway. In the last
couple of days have noticed small holes appearing in the soil and a
large number of wasp like insects. The bodies are very slimilar in
colour but the abdomen is flater than a wasps - and they are not as
aggressive as wasps. They hover very low to the ground. They seem
fairly dozy and don't appear to attack when you try to get rid of
them. Firstly are they wasps, if not what are they and how do I get
rid of them!!!

Well, they are wasps, but I suggest NOT getting rid of them!

There are a few species of wasp in the UK that can cause trouble
(mostly in genus Vespa), but hundreds of other species. Some
don't even HAVE stings! Your description makes it pretty clear
that they won't bother you.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Slight correction, Nick; all *female* wasps have stings; male wasps, like
male bees, do not.

In article ,
"Miss Perspicacia Tick" writes:
|
| There are a few species of wasp in the UK that can cause trouble
| (mostly in genus Vespa), but hundreds of other species. Some
| don't even HAVE stings! Your description makes it pretty clear
| that they won't bother you.
|
| Slight correction, Nick; all *female* wasps have stings; male wasps, like
| male bees, do not.

I think that you will find that there are a large number of species
of stingless wasp in the UK, though most are very small. Your
remark is certainly true about genus Vespa, which includes the
common wasp (USA: yellowjacket) and hornet.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.