Well its that time of year again and our old enemy the wasp (that’s maybe a bit harsh as wasps do have a job in nature) is making its appearance once again. Last year saw very low numbers of wasps due to the weather we had. We had a brief period of warm weather in the spring, during that period pest controllers had a brief busy spell with requests for wasps nest removal in Bolton, this was followed with a sharp cold snap that effectively killed off all those wasps that had enjoyed an early active period. Some pest controllers were down over 100 nests on a normal year, so it shows what an effect it had overall on wasp numbers. Did you notice an absence of wasps at last years BBQ’s?? Properly not as I don’t think we got the weather for even getting the BBQ out of the shed last year!!!!
Most early season wasp calls are for the removal of wasps nests the size of an apple. This is the beginning of the colony by the queen who would have spent the previous winter tucked up somewhere warm and safe in a shed or loft. This nest is then added to as the summer goes on, as the wasps hatch from within the nest they take over the nest building role, the queen then concentrating on one thing only, reproducing!
Over the winter discussions have been on going between pest controllers, with predictions being made about the coming wasp season and if the previous years weather will have long term effects on wasp numbers. My guess is it will be a few years yet before wasp numbers return to previous levels. So far this season I have seen a steady increase in calls for wasps nest removal Bolton, but other areas have been hit and miss, with some towns still not having many problems with wasps at all. So the jury is still out, but with warmer weather forecast for the weekend it seems we will soon find out…..