Stinging Insect Control

Wasps

Several wasp species can be found in the Greater Dayton area.

Although wasps feed on insects such as house flies and garden pests, some can also be dangerous to people. But most wasps typically ignore people unless they are directly threatened. Unlike bees, most wasps are not significant pollinators.

Honey Bees

The honey bee was introduced into the United States in Colonial America. Honey bees are highly social, primarily beneficial insects who are vital pollinators. As such, they should never be killed unless absolutely necessary. Bees make combs of waxen cells placed side by side that provide spaces to rear young and to store honey. The bee colony lives on the stored honey throughout winters, and therefore, can persist for years.

Yellow Jackets

Yellow jackets are wasps, not bees. They are insigificant as pollinators and are among the more highly aggressive wasp species.

Yellow jackets are often pests around picnic areas, trash cans, and humming bird feeders. Unless their nest can be located and treated, complete control is difficult or impossible. Some measure of relief may be afforded through the use of traps baited with sugary liquids and placed in affected areas.

Hornets

All wasps will defend their nests, but baldfaced hornets are the most aggressive wasps found in our area. They can be distinguished from bees by their thin "waists" and their white or pale yellow markings. When threatened, a colony of hornets will mount an all-out offensive that can consist of hundreds or thousands of individuals. Such attacks can be fatal, especially to allergic individuals.

Carpenter Bees

It's not really fair to call carpenter bees "stinging insects" because the males have no stingers and the females very rarely sting. Rather, carpenter bees (sometimes called "borer bees" or "wood bees") are disliked mainly because they bore holes in wood and make long tunnels provisioned with pollen and eggs. They prefer to enter unpainted wood and commonly nest in redwood and unpainted deck timber.

For help with stinging insects or any other pest extermination problems, please contact Z-Best Pest Control. Serving the Cincinnati and Dayton, Ohio Metropolitan Areas.