{"id":17216,"date":"2020-02-21T14:05:43","date_gmt":"2020-02-21T17:05:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lawnstarter.com\/blog\/?p=17216"},"modified":"2024-09-24T15:19:28","modified_gmt":"2024-09-24T18:19:28","slug":"6-worst-stinging-pests-raleigh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lawnstarter.com\/blog\/north-carolina\/raleigh-nc\/6-worst-stinging-pests-raleigh\/","title":{"rendered":"6 Worst Stinging Pests in Raleigh"},"content":{"rendered":"

The zoom of insect wing buzzing by your ears. It\u2019s enough to make you flinch or swat wildly at the air, and around Raleigh, there\u2019s no shortage of these fear-inducing bugs.<\/p>

\"Wayne
Dr. Wayne Buhler<\/figcaption><\/figure>

The most-likely concerns for homeowners are fire ants and stinging pests that nest in the ground, such as yellow jackets, says Dr. Wayne Buhler<\/a>, professor and North Carolina State Extension Pesticide Safety Education Specialist.<\/p>

\u201cI think the worst by far are what we call the hymenoptera,\u201d says Buhler. \u201cMy focus would be on the yellow jackets and the social wasps.\u201d Hymenoptera are the large order of insects that include wasps, bees and ants \u2014 all the things that come to mind when you think \u201csting.\u201d<\/p>

From the seemingly omnipresent mosquito to the painful and aggressive bald-faced hornet, here are the six worst stinging pests in Raleigh.<\/p>

Mosquitoes<\/h2>

It\u2019s the quintessential biting pest. It\u2019s what immediately pops into mind when a sting interrupts your barbecue: the mosquito.<\/p>

The tiny bloodsuckers are the epitome of pest, interfering with our best summer plans by buzzing around our ears and leaving us with painful, itchy welts when they bite.<\/p>

Those bites can even transmit dangerous diseases including Zika and malaria, so if there ever was a pest that needs controlling, it\u2019s the mosquito.<\/p>

Most active at dawn and at dusk, the mosquito breeds in water,\u00a0explains<\/a> the North Carolina State University Extension. So controlling mosquitoes<\/a> starts with controlling any areas of standing water in your yard.<\/p>

This can be everything from a birdbath or a dead stump to children\u2019s toys, and it only takes a small amount of water. Always \u201ctip and toss\u201d standing water to keep it free from breeding mosquitoes.<\/p>

Chemical controls, including \u201cdunks\u201d for breeding sites and sprays for adult resting sites, are also available, and if you\u2019re worried about bites, remember to wear protective clothing and keep some bug spray close.<\/p>

P.S: One of the weirder insects found in Raleigh<\/a> is the giant mosquito. While they can bite through two layers of clothing, they aren’t known to spread diseases to humans.<\/p>

Yellow Jackets<\/h2>

Most people can likely spot a yellow jacket, thanks to its distinct namesake coloration, and most people likely avoid them when they see them thanks to their painful sting and habit of attacking targets in large swarms.<\/p>

They commonly nest in lawns, particularly in open sandy areas and at the base of landscape plants,\u00a0says<\/a>\u00a0the N.C. State Extension. Anywhere with a small opening leading to a large cavity is a potential nest site.<\/p>

In late summer, you\u2019re likely to find them around trash cans, bird feeders or other sources of forage.<\/p>

When they sting, it\u2019s primarily because they\u2019re defending their nest. Something like walking over the nest with a lawnmower is sure to do the trick.<\/p>

If you\u2019re looking to keep from getting stung, you need to keep your eyes peeled for the small holes they fly in and out of, and do your best to keep away from it.<\/p>

They forage for proteins and carbohydrates, Buhler says. That\u2019s why it\u2019s never wise to leave any sort of sweet drink unattended outside.<\/p>

He recalled an instance when a can was left on top a truck, and when the drinker returned, he was greeted with a yellow jacket sting on the roof of his mouth when he went to take a sip.<\/p>

Controlling yellow jackets<\/h3>

When it comes to controlling them, the first decision is whether you need to do anything at all.<\/p>

In spite of their fearsome reputation, yellow jackets are beneficial, preying on other pest insects and serving as a food source for other wildlife.<\/p>

Since their nests die out every year, it\u2019s possible simply to wait until temperatures drop and the colony dies out.<\/p>

The best method of control is an aerosol wasp and hornet spray directed at the nest opening. Do not pour gasoline down the nest. This folkloric pest control method is extremely dangerous and heavily damages the local environment.<\/p>

Red Imported Fire Ant<\/h2>
\"Red
The red imported fire ant’s fierce-looking mouth isn’t the problem. They use them only to grab hold of your skin so they can ram you with the venom-containing stingers on their abdomen. Credit: AntWeb.org<\/a>, CC by SA 3.0<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>

We know the red imported fire ant for its telltale painful sting. The burning sensation brought on by that sting gave the ant its name. This is one Buhler reckons to be of high concern to landscapers or homeowners working in their backyards.<\/p>

Like bees, fire ants have a social structure. The colony has a social order ruled over by a queen which the other ants will defend via their sting.<\/p>

And what a sting it is. Stings will often develop into pustule-like sores within 24 hours. Scratching can lead to scarring or infection. Some people are allergic, and when stung need to seek medical attention immediately.<\/p>

If you see fire ants around your house or their telltale dirt mounds in your yard, you\u2019ll want to take action, either yourself or by\u00a0calling in an exterminator<\/a>.<\/p>

Buhler says the best option is a granular or powder insecticide bait. Hungry ants will gobble it up and take it back to the queen, eventually killing it and wiping out the colony.<\/p>

Cicada Killer Wasp<\/h2>
\"Cicada
Cicada killer wasp. Credit: Judy Gallagher<\/a>, CC 2.0<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Last year, local news stations\u00a0reported<\/a>\u00a0the presence of large, cicada killer wasps.<\/p>

Large and packing a more painful sting than normal wasps, the cicada killer doesn\u2019t normally target people. \u00a0But if you threaten one enough, it will forget about its cicada dinner long enough to leave you with a painful sting. Only European hornets can compete in size and bulk.<\/p>

In one lifetime, a Cicada killer wasp can kill and gather more than 100 cicadas, each weighing twice as much as her.<\/p>

In North Carolina, keep an eye out starting in July and continuing throughout the summer. Just remember not to pester it.<\/p>

Luckily, control of cicada killers is hardly ever needed. Males can\u2019t sting at all and females sting rarely. But their nests can damage turf and small plants, and the main method of control is to properly fertilize your turf so it provides more of a barrier when the wasp tries to dig its nest.<\/p>

You could apply pesticide directly to the nest opening, but, as now-retired Lafayette College insect researcher Chuck Holliday\u00a0advised in a 2012 paper<\/a>, “I believe that you are in more danger from pesticides applied to your lawn to kill cicada-killers than from the wasps.”\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>

If they really bother you, he suggests an alternative. “You can swat and kill the wasps very easily with a badminton racquet if you swing it hard,” he wrote. “Don\u2019t use a tennis racquet unless you play tennis regularly, as it will quickly give you tennis elbow and it is hard to accelerate quickly compared to the much lighter badminton racquet.\u00a0You may, if you like, call this aerobic exercise.”<\/p>

\"Gulliver
Raleigh’s wasps are quite not as large as those Gulliver\u00a0encountered on Brobdingnag<\/a>\u00a0and don’t require a sword to dispatch. A badminton racquet will do, says one expert. Illustration credit: Arthur Rackham, 1909 edition of “Gulliver’s Travels.”<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Paper Wasps<\/h2>

These very common, but no less frightening, wasps come in many different species, but are the ones you\u2019re likely most familiar with.<\/p>

Called paper wasps because of the paper-like substance used for their nests, the wasps really pack a punch, able to sting multiple times, mainly in defense of their nests.<\/p>

That\u2019s not good news when you see those nests, commonly built under roof overhangs, on screen porches or other areas around your house.<\/p>

This is one species that Buhler emphasized.<\/p>

\u201cThey tend not to be a problem unless you\u2019re right at their nest or interfering with their nest,\u201d he says. \u201cThey\u2019re not nearly as defensive as yellow jackets.\u201d<\/p>

Paper wasps are also considered beneficial insects, controlling populations of other insects, particularly caterpillars. The extension even notes that tobacco farmers will build wooden nest boxes around their fields to control caterpillars plaguing the nearby crop.<\/p>

They have a social structure like bees, with a queen who starts a nest in the spring and workers that continuously hunt and gather food to bring back to the nest and feed their young.<\/p>

As far as controlling the wasps, the extension\u00a0says<\/a>\u00a0to attack them in the evening with a normal aerosol wasp and hornet spray.<\/p>

If it\u2019s a small nest it can be knocked down with a broom, or if there are individuals inside the home they can be swatted, stepped on or simply vacuumed up.<\/p>

European Hornets<\/h2>
\"European
European hornets’ darker brown bodies and larger size distinguish them from yellow jackets.<\/figcaption><\/figure>

The European hornet, often called brown or giant hornet, is the largest hornet found int he U.S.,\u00a0according<\/a>\u00a0to the extension.<\/p>

When one of these puppies flies around your head, you\u2019ll know it. The adults resemble yellow jackets in their markings, but are much larger, growing as long as an inch and a half.<\/p>

Nests are typically built in hollow trees but also in barns, sheds, attics and inside the walls of houses.<\/p>

From there, they set out to find grasshoppers, flies, bees and yellow jackets to eat, continuing to build their nests until they get up to several hundred individuals strong \u2014 sometimes as many as 1,000.<\/p>

When temperatures cool off in winter, the workers die out and the queen seeks refuge elsewhere and old nests aren\u2019t reinhabited.<\/p>

But while they\u2019re active, they\u2019re really active. Instead of going dormant at night like the majority of stinging insects, European hornets stay active.<\/p>

Possibly attracted to the light, they\u2019ve been known to slam hard into windows, leading some people to think they\u2019re actually trying to break the glass.<\/p>

The best control method is a regular aerosol wasp and hornet spray. Direct the spray into the nest for 5-10 seconds, the article says, and then quickly leave the area to dodge the hornets coming out of the nest.<\/p>

Bald-Faced Hornets<\/h2>
\"Bald-faced
Bald-faced hornet. Credit: Marvin Smith<\/a>, CC by SA 2.0<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>

So named because of white patches on its face, the bald-faced hornet is actually a wasp, but thanks to its large size and aerial nests it\u2019s known as a hornet.<\/p>

Like paper wasps, the N.C. State Extension\u00a0says<\/a>, they catch and eat caterpillars and many other insects that damage landscape plants.<\/p>

But if they do build a nest near your house, it can become a hazard as the extension says bald-faced hornets can sting repeatedly and when a nest is threatened, many of them will swarm out in its defense.<\/p>

The sting is nothing to be trifled with. According to the extension, the sting is instantly painful and the symptoms: itching, swelling, soreness, can last for days.<\/p>

And having a swarm of hornets attacking you, all with the ability to sting you over and over. You may need to take some action, by calling in a pest control company<\/a> or doing it yourself.<\/p>

If you go the DIY route, you can control bald-faced hornets as long as you can locate the nest. When you find it, observe it for a few minutes and see if it\u2019s active. You should see workers moving in and out.<\/p>

Two different chemicals can control them, including aerosol wasp and hornet spray and Sevin dust. If using aerosol, spray the nest thoroughly as with paper wasps or European hornets.<\/p>

Apply Sevin dust in the evening when the hornets are less active. Use a duster to blow the dust into the nest, and the colony should die out in a few days.<\/p>

Being Prepared<\/h2>

Itching not to get stung? Buhler recommends keeping a can of wasp and hornet spray handy while doing landscape work, or within easy reach in your vehicle.<\/p>

And when controlling social insects, like bees, yellow jackets or fire ants, be sure to get the queen.<\/p>

For those ground nests, Buhler says sprays won\u2019t do it. Use a granule or powder and line the entrance to the nest during evening hours when the insects are less active.<\/p>

This way, when they bring back food, foragers will track the insecticide back into the nest and eventually to the queen.<\/p>

Within a couple of days, that nest will be history \u2014 and so will the fear of getting stung the next time you reach for that lemonade.<\/p>

To find out more, Buhler recommends Raleigh homeowners check out the N.C. State entomology\u00a0website<\/a>.<\/p>

Main image credit: Yellow jacket, Greg Westfall<\/a>, CC 2.0<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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