· by Michael Blair, Nashville's Pest Control
Middle Tennessee has several stinging insects that get treated identically and should not be. Some are genuinely aggressive in defense of a nest; others are essentially harmless and useful.
What you probably have
Paper wasps build open umbrella-shaped combs under eaves and are relatively unaggressive away from the nest. Yellow jackets nest in ground cavities or wall voids and are highly defensive.
Bald-faced hornets build the large gray enclosed nests in trees and are aggressive near them. Mud daubers build tubes and are essentially harmless.
Which are worth leaving
Mud daubers, which are solitary and hunt spiders. Paper wasps well away from doors and walkways, since they are effective garden predators and rarely bother anyone at a distance.
Carpenter bees are a different case — largely harmless in themselves but their tunnels invite woodpecker damage to siding and trim.
- Paper wasp: open comb under eaves, relatively calm
- Yellow jacket: ground or wall void, very defensive
- Bald-faced hornet: large gray enclosed nest, aggressive
- Mud dauber: mud tubes, harmless, leave alone
- Carpenter bee: round holes in bare wood
When to call someone
Yellow jackets in a wall void, any large enclosed hornet nest, nests near a door or a walkway, and any situation where someone in the household is allergic.
Wall void yellow jackets in particular should not be sealed in — they chew through into the living space looking for a way out.
If you do treat it yourself
After dark when the colony is inside and inactive, from a distance, with an escape route planned, and never from a ladder. Wear covering clothing.
Late summer is the worst time to disturb yellow jackets, when colonies are largest and most defensive.