What is this? Wasp/Hornet?

[rossyl]

What is this? Is it a Queen?

This just scared the living daylights out of me.

We previously had a problem with wasps, so am a little concerned.

Edited by rossyl on Friday 26th May 10:24

[Simpo Two]

Pah, amateur. I had a queen hornet in my lounge last week, caught it in a glass and put it outside!

Mind you I was slightly concerned that if we got into a fight it might win...

[SBF]

Spicy Fly.

Install CCTV, record all movements, it's a Russian attack drone.

[Murph7355]

It looks dead, or asleep. Nothing to worry about (except it perhaps stealing your 1p).

[MesoForm]

Queen common wasps look the same as normal wasps just a bit bigger.
Hornets are more orange colour so I think that’s a hornet you’ve got. Nothing to worry about more than common wasps, the sting hurts like a bee sting, it’s the Asian hornets that are the the ones you have to worry about as they are much more aggressive.

[AW111]

SBF said:

Spicy Fly.

Install CCTV, record all movements, it's a Russian attack drone.

Wasps aren't real!

[TGCOTF-dewey]

MesoForm said:

Queen common wasps look the same as normal wasps just a bit bigger.
Hornets are more orange colour so I think that’s a hornet you’ve got. Nothing to worry about more than common wasps, the sting hurts like a bee sting, it’s the Asian hornets that are the the ones you have to worry about as they are much more aggressive.

Asian Hornets AKA... The. 50cal wasp.

[SBF]

MesoForm said:

Queen common wasps look the same as normal wasps just a bit bigger.
Hornets are more orange colour so I think that’s a hornet you’ve got. Nothing to worry about more than common wasps, the sting hurts like a bee sting, it’s the Asian hornets that are the the ones you have to worry about as they are much more aggressive.

& they know Karate.

[Sford]

Get them quite regularly out in the countryside. Hornets I tend to let live as they are helpful. I did let one live last year and long story short when I went for my evening loo trip it was under the rim of the toilet seat. Dropped down into my boxers so when I pulled them up it stung me on the gooch. Twice. I killed the f*$%er.

Edited by Sford on Friday 26th May 14:37

[blueg33]

Hornets are wasps. HTH

Both are important in the ecosystem.

[theboss]

Sford said:

Get them quite regularly out in the countryside. Hornets I tend to let live as they are helpful. I did let one live last year and long story short when I went for my evening loo trip it was under the rim of the toilet seat. Dropped down into my boxers so when I pulled them up it stung me on the gooch. Twice. I killed the f*$%er.

Edited by Sford on Friday 26th May 14:37

I’m going to enjoy relaying this story to my missus who absolutely freaks out at the sight of a hornet.

A few summers back they were a constant daily occurrence, we must have been near a nest but I never identified where. She was constantly on edge about them.

[Magnum 475]

We’ve got a few European Hornet colonies in the woods near our house. They’re big buggers, especially the queens. They’re also pretty laid back and not remotely aggressive.

I did freak slightly when one of the queens flew into my study a couple of weeks ago looking for somewhere to nest - thankfully it didn’t stay long as I don’t want a colony in there!

[rossyl]

Is that a photo of a queen?

[Roofless Toothless]

Sford said:

Get them quite regularly out in the countryside. Hornets I tend to let live as they are helpful. I did let one live last year and long story short when I went for my evening loo trip it was under the rim of the toilet seat. Dropped down into my boxers so when I pulled them up it stung me on the gooch. Twice. I killed the f*$%er.

Edited by Sford on Friday 26th May 14:37

I was up on Symonds Yat once time, and if anyone doesn’t know it, it is an awesomely beautiful place. There were quite a few people there, but people were as silent as if they were in church, taking in the view.

Silent until a wasp flew up the leg of my shorts.

[theboss]

rossyl said:

Is that a photo of a queen?

I've only seen a few wasps in the last month which were clearly queens which had emerged and were looking for nest sites. I haven't seen any workers yet. It seems like a late start to the season this year probably because March and April were cool. Last year was the same, the only nest I had to have removed was tiny, it was late in the summer and the wasps were all puny little streaks of piss instead of the more substantial affair.

I suspect what you found is a European hornet queen which was looking for somewhere to start building a nest.

They are quite cool as long as you don't stumble across a nest or sit on one. Much less aggressive than wasps and they hoover up other insects like mad.