Wasps and yellow jackets
Wasp and yellow jacket control in Bakersfield
Leave the nest alone and call. An independent company can tell you whether it needs treating and how it would go about it.
Calls answered early morning to late evening
Which one do you have?
- Yellow jackets are 1/2 to 1 inch long with jagged yellow and black stripes. They nest in holes in the ground, in wall cavities, or in hanging gray paper nests with one entrance, and they scavenge on food.
- Paper wasps are slender with long legs. They build open-celled nests under eaves and are rarely aggressive.
- Hornets is a word many people use for any big wasp with a hanging paper nest. Tell the company what you see and where.
Why it gets worse late in the season
Nests start in spring and grow into summer. UC IPM says defensive behavior increases as the season goes on, as colonies get larger and food gets scarcer. By late summer foragers want sugar, so soda cans and fruit become a problem at a backyard table.
Ground and wall nests are the ones that catch people out, because you may not see them until you disturb one. If wasps are flying in and out of a hole, UC IPM says that probably means a nest. Leave it alone.
What a nest visit usually involves
Someone finds the nest, confirms the species and treats or removes it. UC IPM says paper wasp nests generally need no treatment unless they are near people, so the answer may be to leave one alone. It also notes that most social wasps help by eating other pest insects.
Ask how the nest will be reached, whether a wall may need opening, and what to do about pets during the visit.
Keep them from settling in
- Cover food and drinks outdoors, and keep garbage cans closed.
- Pick up fallen fruit.
- Check eaves and sheds in spring, when nests are small.
- Don't disturb a nest once you find one.
Seeing something now? Make the call.
Say what you found, where you found it, and your ZIP. The company on the line can tell you how it would handle the job and what a visit involves.
Calls answered early morning to late evening. Calls may be recorded. Referral disclosure