Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Hornet season has begun

And just when I thought the Wasp Queens season for nesting has ended, new monster has arrived!!! This time MUCH BIGGER!!! Hornet Queens looking for nesting sites!
I feel that all Earth's creatures have their place under the blue sky but NOT UNDER MY ROOF!!!

Hornets give me creeps! They are the size of a miniature bird for bees sake! I'm happy we don't have the Japanese Hornet which is 2 times bigger than our European Hornet. But these Hornets invading our cottage at this time are no Forager Hornets but Queens which sure are big! Like Wasp Queens so do Hornet Queens search for nesting sites in late Spring. This is the right time to keep their numbers low around the household ... and around the Apiary :) I don't want my ladies to have much hussle in life.
My weapon of choice is a Badminton racquet which is very effective.
I use thick rubber gloves and a beekeepers anorak when pursuing Hornets. 
They are huge! My finger is thinner than the gloves. She is as big as 2 thirds
of my little finger!
I have evicted one Hornet Queen just a few days ago from a hollow tree only 10 meters away from our cottage. Today I killed the one in the pics and as soon as I took off the anorak and the veil and placed the racquet behind the door I saw another one in front of one of my Top Bar Hives. She entered the hive and I immediately dressed again and ran out armed with my badminton racquet. She flew out of the hive obviously not willing to risk her life since she has much to risk; existence of her entire Hornet colony rests in her abdomen.
She flew pass me and that is when she met the racquet face on! BANG!
In the last couple of days I killed 3 Hornet Queens. I wish these are the last ones to visit. May they be in peace ... someplace else.
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6 comments:

  1. Patrick SellmanMay 28, 2013 at 11:07 PM

    Ive stopped killing wasps and Hornets at least ten years ago. They are not harmful to the housepeople. They are very important as predators for your trees, berrys and kitchengardens safety. Most of the time there isnt so many of them but sometimes there will be a waspyear.

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    1. Dusko Bojic aka Che GuebuddhaMay 28, 2013 at 11:32 PM

      I agree. They are very important part of the biodiversity. I even saw Wasps pollinating Apples and Red Currant bushes this year :)

      Last year we had a very bad Wasp year. We had several colonies under our roof and one beside the window in the wall just beside the main door. That one we had to kill (petrol cloth).

      This year we will be spending more time in our cottage and I want to make sure we get not many nests under the roof. So many hollow tress and stone walls for building nests around here :) but not under our roof especially no Hornets.

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    2. Patrick SellmanMay 28, 2013 at 11:54 PM

      Did they harm you? My experience is that they didnt harm the housepeople. When I built my hose severeal years ago there was a waspyear and I have waspnests all around my house but they let me be. I could stay hammering half a meter from the nests and they still not attack but if they have then I ofcourse have put the nests away.

      There will be a wasp year sometimes and you cant do anything about it. After this hard winter I dont think there will be such a year this year.

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    3. Dusko Bojic aka Che GuebuddhaMay 30, 2013 at 4:09 AM

      Hi Patrick,
      as a matter of fact the Wasps did harm me on several occasions in my life :)
      Last year was the last time I was stung by a Wasp which had a nest under the door of our chicken coop at Kretsloppshuset in Värmland. Each time we would go to open or close the hens the Wasps would fly out and chase us away. I was the only one stung though.

      My wife is also allergic to bees and wasps and I just can't let them build a nest close to where we walk often.
      In our locality there are many stone walls and hollow trees where they can build as many nests as they feel like but not under our roof or in my empty hives :) I already evicted at least 10 Wasp Queens from my empty hives or under the roof of my occupied hives. They have no place there in my opinion.

      I do have respect for those who like to keep Wasps and Hornets under their roof :) but that is not me.

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  2. Patrick SellmanMay 30, 2013 at 4:34 AM

    Ok, looks like you have a waspproblem down there.
    If there are allergic people then you have to be aware its one of the most dangerous allergic reactions.

    Maybe you should get some BetaPred to stop allergic chockreactions. Talk with the doctor. I have that at home because Im a beekeeper and its a long way to the hospital. If I have guest and they are alergic I can give them a dose.

    No offence :-)

    I have taken a stand to the defence of the wasp because beekeepers commonly give nurture to a hate against wasps and thats one of the things I throw over board then I turn every stone in my old beekeeping attitude.

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    1. Dusko Bojic aka Che GuebuddhaMay 30, 2013 at 5:55 AM

      No offence taken my friend :)

      I asked in the pharmacy to buy that medication for bee sting allergies but they refused to sell it without prescribtion :(

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