Throughout California, bald-faced hornets are more than a nuisance. Because of the threat they pose, today, we at Animal Pest Management would like to share more information concerning bald faced hornets.
How to Locate a Bald Faced Hornet Nest
Bald faced hornets are a social insect that construct their nests from cellulose materials (trees and plant materials) that greatly resembles paper as they go. They are often mistaken for bees due to their size and coloring but are more closely related to yellow jackets than they are hornets and bald-faced wasps. Their sphere-shaped paper-like nests can reach up to 3 feet tall and are built the spring in order to rear their young. When she first begins to build a new colony, the queen sets out to gather wooden fibers, frequently from houses, branches, fencing and plants in the spring. From the eaves or other points of a structure, as well as suspended and hangs off of tree limbs, are a few of the places the nests are constructed. Once it is completed, it is about the size of a basketball. Throughout the construction, the wooden fibers are chewed and mixed with their saliva as they build layers with paper-like cells. After the completion of the nest, interior resembles a honeycomb.
Where Do Bald Faced Hornet Queens, Drones & Workers Live?
Bald faced hornets are heavily populated in the southeastern states and are quite common in California and across North America. In addition to soft bodied insects like caterpillars and aphids as well as yellow jackets, they enjoy meats and harvest nectar and pollen from flowering plants in their diet. Bald faced hornets have seemingly larger colonies, being social insects. They all have specific tasks to contribute to help support the colony and their castes include a queen, drones, and workers. The drone’s role is to be readily available for when they queen is receptive to fertilization, which she will then lay hundreds of eggs in turn. The workers complete all the other tasks such as foraging for food, nest construction, as well as caring for the young, drones, and queen to ensure survival of the colony. The height of their activity is late summer, and they are minor pollinators as bald-faced hornets visit various flowers to collect the nectar.
Bald Faced Hornet Stings
Bald faced hornets sting repeatedly since they do not lose their stinger, unlike bees that sting once and die. Whenever they feel the colony is in danger, they will attack until satisfied there is no longer a threat since their primary objective is to protect the nest. The females are the only ones that have a stinger and will often patrol their territory close to the nest. Any perceived threat is subject to their unmerciful stings. In addition to the smooth stinger delivering a painful pierce through the skin, they will inject a venomous fluid. They can experience mild to severe cases of allergic reaction in tandem with pain of varying degrees when people are victimized by their venomous stings.
Stinging Insect Inspections, Control, Removal & More in San Bernardino, Orange, Los Angeles, Riverside & San Diego Counties, California
It is best to call in the specialists of Animal Pest Management and let our certified experts eliminate them from your grounds to keep you, family, and pets safe from their venomous stings since the bald faced hornets are potentially dangerous to anyone who gets close. Contact us today!
