Red Wasps

Posted by bugman March 11th, 2009 at 9:21 am

Comments 25

billdroadrunner wrote:
The red wasp I like is Polistes annularis which you can see on Bugguide.
Posted 12 Mar 2009 at 12:52 pm ¶
nicolec wrote:
These are very common in North Alabama. They truly aren’t aggressive at all but their sting is quite painful. Other than removing nests near doorways and in high traffic areas, there’s no need to kill them. They’ll leave you alone if you show the same courtesy.
Posted 22 May 2009 at 9:35 am ¶
SixGun wrote:
Curious Mind I used to live in the Little Rock area and we had Red Wasps in the eves of our house as well and our batch or batches was VERY agressive. I watched them daily and they would actually post guards at the entrance to the nest. They would however give a warning flight at you first, then be ready. I have found the Reds to much more agressive than a regular Paper Wasp. I have lived in Arkansas all my life and the Red Wasp is in my opinion and experience more agressive than a standard Paper Wasp.
Posted 02 Jun 2009 at 12:20 pm ¶
srod wrote:
At least in the Texas Hill Country, Red Wasps are very agressive! And they will follow you for several hundred feet chasing you away from their nest.
Posted 07 Nov 2009 at 10:25 pm ¶
shortstack wrote:
Just found one of these indoors this late on a very cold December night. I’m concerned there could be more in my attic. I don’t know where this one came from. I just love this website. Yall have helped me identify several critters that have showed up in my yard, the oddest of which would be the arrowhead flatworm. Thanks!
Posted 31 Dec 2009 at 12:20 am ¶
tacoburrito wrote:
I agree with SixGun I have red wasps around my house here in Oklahoma, and I have been stung by them at least five times in three years. They will fly at you, and even chase you. The straw that broke the camel’s back for me was when I got up one morning, donned my robe and flip flops, and walked to the kitchen for breakfast before work. I opened the door to the refrigerator and felt incredible burning pain in my foot. A red wasp had stung me on the foot!! It had gotten into the house somehow and as it lay on the floor, its final dying act was to crawl onto my flip flop, and sting me on the foot! I was just getting breakfast in my own home!! Needless to say I shared my pain with the little ____. Now I put out traps for them every year and I would advise anyone to do the same, they ARE agressive.
Posted 04 May 2010 at 5:03 pm ¶
NoBoDEE wrote:
I will back up sixgun with a SHOTGUN!
Make NO mistake about it, we have property in East Texas, between Canton, & Tyler.
I live in Dallas, I have been all over Texas in my 52 plus years and never met a meaner strain of yellow jacket, or hornet, than the RED WASP, EXTREMELY AGGRESSIVE. As with most , never cast a shadow across their guarded space, and for sure always, ALWAYS be aware of your surroundings around any place they might build. I opened the bar b Que one late summer evening out on Larry’s Lake ( a friend of mine whom was killed in a head on collision several years back when I was away living in Las Vegas, I returned to confirm his untimely death, while out at his property, which NoBoDEE has moved a ting in the two plus years since he died except myself and my son, I do miss him dearly.
While we foraged about the property now going back to nature (26 acre lake, includes the island we built a log cabin on back in 1983) I was chased away from almost every structure by the RED DEVILS, whom have just about all but taken over everything.
I walked out onto the pier which has about fallen in. I was so sad to see his property he loved and cared for so much. I can say it was so quite, & peaceful there. I could almost feel his presence. My son now 19, his birthday was the day before, followed me as we walked the shoreline, I spoke of earlier & much happier times before he was born. I walked up to the old rusted bar b que that was used till his death I ak sure, bottles were still sitting on the side of it, I opened the bar b que like an idiot (not thinking, LOL) I was met with three huge nest, I think the surprise was on us as well, because they all turned to look at me, Chills run along my skin as I speak of this, I let that lid slam shut as fast as gravity would allow, I remember the nest going stark with as they left the nest, without missing a beat I turned ran almost into my sons face, he needed no proding whatsoever, he had seen the horror on my face as well as the sight under that lid. I heard the slap of the lid slamming down know full well those nest came loode and hit the grills, lol, retribution would be swift!
Time seemed to slow down as we turned and ran as fast as humanly possible, our legs felt like they weighed a hundred pounds each and with each step the weight just increased. I was expecting multiple stings at any moment, after what seemed an eternity, my son and I had ran approximately twenty yards, turned and took the liberty of looking over our shoulders just a tad, still keeping pace as we did so, alarmed to see many red figures approaching fast and furiously, almost within striking distance, our skin crawled ( we later recounted this to each other) we continued our rampage the hell out of the area, dafe and sound, I think we had ran a total of a hundred yards by the time we took another look. I am not sure when they stopped chasing us but there were some flying around the area. I believe they can smell fear, I know we smelled horribly of it.
We watchedthe area of the Bar b que from a safe distance, it was teaming with them, as we had to walk about 30 yards from them to get back to the main road out. I can say for sure we were lucky, had I not dropped that lid I think this story would not have been spoken of so lightly. I was so shocked to see so many of them on almost every structure, and even the old outhouse was occupied by them, these pest were dominating the area where not even yellow jackets were seen, there are several other cabins there, an old barn/storeage shed. Each had red wasps nest under or inside. It was almost 2 pm, and getting late, I felt like an alien intruder, as these wasp kept us from approaching any structure whatsoever. They would take flight @ us if we got closer than twenty feet. I am not exaggerating one bit. I remember way back when we used to swim there, fish there, and have tons of fun. These were times when his pappy was there each weekend, and Larry all but lived there, there were always wasps yellow jackets and the such which had to be taken care of , the upkeep on the property was meticulous, & it showed, and were enjoyed immensely by everyone that came out. Time passed as well as his pappy, then him mother god rest her soul too. His father told me when I spoke to him that he just could not bare to go out there anymore since Larry’s passing, never touched it since the day larry left for town and never made it back, his boots were still sitting where he had taken them off, expecting to gather them upon his return. I suppose that we never think we might not be coming back. However as I walked out of the property, I turned and looked back at how beautifull it all was, and from that distance, the sun shining off the surface of the lake, all the trees, the winding road, I felt like I was ran off, a trespasser on my friends property. I returned to my fathers place a few miles down the road. We all laughed about the experience and felt maybe we seemed to make too much of it all.
I can tell you that as we all sat around talking, I said that as long as there is life, & people here, then it is inviting, and my father and my stepmother take great care of their property, and there are all kinds of wasps yellow jackets, that defend their areas, yet are kept in check by vigilantly evicting them when they make nest too close to the home of structures frequented by people, we have all been stung by many of these good pest, I agree they are not to be arbitrarily exterminated, but left alone if possible.
Most are just doing GODS work. This long story was to give you the same feeling as we encountered, and to also show that most black wasp, and yellow jackets will protect thier nest when it is endangered, but in the case of the RED WASP they are extremely aggressive when you apprach their nest. We laugh that is the cause of their almost floresent red color, a warning DON’T tread here!
Posted 18 Jul 2010 at 12:11 pm ¶
bugman wrote:
Dear NoBoDee,
Thanks for sharing your first hand experience with Red Wasps.
Posted 18 Jul 2010 at 8:45 pm ¶
kimintn wrote:
These red wasps are MUCH more aggressive than the black ones!!! My husband was bitten yesterday, as was our neighbor and myself…and the bites DO hurt! Our hands swelled up, turned red and warm, and were very painful…fortunately, those were the only affects we noticed from the bites. I was standing on the deck working with some flower boxes and this one came over to me and attacked…I didn’t even know it was there, nor was I bothering it at all!! It was stuck in my hand – stinging me – for about 5-8 seconds, and I had a very hard time shaking it off. And, as I said before, the bite does hurt!! We then noticed about 4 or 5 of them – all hovering around the deck posts and eaves on the front porch where there was a small hole that they were coming in and out of. Needless to say, when the weather gets cooler we will be filling in that hole!
Posted 24 Jul 2010 at 2:16 pm ¶
zeldafan wrote:
I just want to come out and say that, having been stung FOUR TIMES within a two week time span by the same nest of red wasps (apparently they are also immune to RAID, as the nest has survived two entire cans worth), I disagree with a number of points from the original response. First off I want to start with a bit of background. I am terrified of spiders, if I even think there is one on me I will completely freak out. However if I witness another person killing a spider, when they could have completely ignored it and never seen it again, I will berate them for their actions. So I’m not an adamant “kill all creepy bugs” guy. But the wasp situation I’m in now is getting out of hand. I can’t even leave my house without being flown at. I have to wrap myself from head to toe in a blanket, or risk a FIFTH sting THIS SUMMER. As I have said I have tried ignoring them, poisoning them, trapping them, even throwing shoes at them from afar (took out three that way). The most recent scare I had was when I came home from work today (8/12/10) and there were a grand total of 11 wasps buzzing around the windows, and air conditioner, of my modest one room apartment. Needless to say, a third can of raid has been emptied in the ongoing war against this SAME NEST. That being said, I have noticed that, for whatever waspy reason, I am the only one targeted by their hostility. Friends and family have come over, during the day and night, at times quietly, others banging loudly on the door (above which, somewhere in the eaves, lies the nest) and have not been stung. I however can’t even approach my front porch without being swarmed at. I have to carry a blanket with me every day to work, so that I can hide under it while I try to sprint through my door. But I’m a long winded fool so I’ll wrap up on this point: I don’t know what wasp you’re referring to when you say it’s a peaceful species, but it’s not the one displayed in the picture above, which is identical to whatever is living above my door.
Posted 12 Aug 2010 at 5:09 pm ¶
lacyb504 wrote:
I “found” a red wasp in my bed one night a few weeks ago. The sting was the worst. It felt like my leg had been set on fire. It turned red, swelled up and burned for days. I have found one other in my house, but I check for them very diligently, inside and outside. I really don’t want to encounter another. I have small grandchildren and worry that they may get stung by one of these vicious bugs.
Posted 22 Aug 2010 at 9:55 pm ¶
tofergy wrote:
I have been attacked and bitten serveral times by these large red wasps. Their color is more orange than red. We reside in SW Tennessee in a rural area. The local Home Depot was total sold out of wasp spray. The gentleman in the department said he had never known a time when they were sold out of wasp spray. He said he had a problem at his home as well. Later I met another gentlemen who was also shopping for spray. He had a 3 year old at home and the nest was just outside the window of his daughter. We have always had a policy of leave them alone and they will leave us alone. NOT, in the case of these insects. I have been attacked 2 times from behind when just in the drive way. Apparently they don’t like a car running near their abode. They congregate around corners of the house where they apparantely get into the attics under the roof overhang. Their sting is extremely painful and lasts several days. The stings is very painful as well create itching over a large area surrounding the sting. One sting was on the top of my ear and the whole side of my face was in agony for several days. I finally declared war on these bothersome creatures and have gone through over $50 dollars of spray. Some work better than others. Several insects fly away even after being sprayed. I have never known an insect as aggressive as these other than hornets.
Posted 28 Aug 2010 at 9:45 am ¶
TXhills wrote:
These red wasps have been really bad this year here in Texas hill country near Austin. They seem to like the eaves and bushes by our front door and picture window the best. I’ve gone through two cans of spray so far. Never had them before this year, at least not in these numbers. Like others have said, our local Home Depot is often sold out of wasp spray because there have been so many people experiencing infestations. I’ve not been stung yet, but it’s not for their lack of trying. They are aggressive, yes sir, they sure are.
Posted 30 Aug 2010 at 11:40 pm ¶
sgurl wrote:
I am sorry to disagree with you ,buit these wasp are very aggresive if you get close totheir nest.Aand i mean with in 10 to 20 feet especialy when their young are present .and the kind withthe yellow face are even worse,yes do somthing about them.
Posted 27 Sep 2010 at 6:20 pm ¶
FoolKiller wrote:
This is my second time to attempt a post here. When my first never appeared, I assumed it was because I violated the party line of “leave them alone and they will leave you alone”. Some wasps may, but NOT the ones I, and apparently others, are discussing here. I inherited a farmhouse in western Kentucky that is not currently occupied. There are several fruit trees (apple, pear, etc.) on the property which I believe are contributing to our wasp infestation. A very large, very red/orange, VERY aggressive type of wasp has basically overrun the place. While NO nests are visible anywhere, the wasps enter and exit multiple places in the house and detached garage via barely visible cracks and holes. In some places they use smooth holes that appear to have been “drilled” in the mortar between bricks, although I can’t imagine how. When I say large, I mean between 1 and ¼ and 1 and ½ inches long. These are at least a quarter larger than “regular” wasps. By aggressive, I mean that if they see you, they come at you until you kill them. We have gone through dozens of cans of the spray that fires a solid stream. Normal wasps hit with this drop immediately and soon die. These just get up and fly back at you, until you knock them down with a steady stream for a third and occasionally fourth time. On one visit late last summer, we were unable to even get out of the car. There were several HUNDRED of them in the air, not swarming, just doing whatever wasps do (a LOT of it). One would hit a car window with an audible noise every 2-3 seconds. We had to turn around and leave. Over the winter I sprayed poison and foam sealant into every crack and hole I could find. I set off multiple bug bombs inside each structure, although they seem to be in the walls and rarely if ever inside. I visited last week, and there were 30-40 of them around. I couldn’t even mow because noise seems to make them even madder and draw them from a distance. I killed what I could, but it was obviously a losing battle as they have apparently found (or made) new cracks and holes. My last recourse is to hire a professional exterminator, but I am very dubious as to how successful this will be. I contacted the largest exterminator in the area and got the “oh it’s just wasps… we’ll spray them and knock the nests down if you can’t”. When I said there were no visible nests and suggested this was something new to my area and more aggressive, I was basically laughed at.
Posted 11 Apr 2011 at 10:18 am ¶
bugman wrote:
Dear FoolKiller,
We generally approve all comments we receive, except for items that are SPAM or otherwise inappropriate. Though we believe in tolerance with insects, many folks who write to us do not share that world view, but we do not censor content that differs from our own stance. We have gotten numerous reports of aggressive Red Wasps and we no longer write that they are harmless. Most Paper Wasps can sting, and they will defend the nest from danger. Approaching the nest, or trying to remove the nest will most assuredly result in the potential for being stung. It seems this is most evident with the Red Wasps. Thanks for supplying your comment.
Posted 11 Apr 2011 at 10:38 am ¶
kblank wrote:
Hello, I just moved into a home in Plano, TX with some kind of red wasps flying all around the patio. I would like to get rid of the nest but I can’t find it. Can you give some tips on locating the nest? – I have looked all around under the eaves and have tried watching where they go but no luck so far. At what time of day would I be most likely to see them going in and out? Thank you.
Posted 07 Jun 2011 at 3:26 pm ¶
zumzum wrote:
well i have been ignoring these pests until yesterday when i “bumped” into one and only knew it stung me by the swelling, not so bad. then one stung my elderly mother, and this morning, just passing by the area on her stairs where they seem to congregate, i was stung 5 times without even paying them any attention. in my experieince they get more and more aggressive as thweir numbers increase. i have a high tolerance for bugs, hate to kill them most of the time but these guys are right little buggers and if i’m going to get stung just coming and going to my moms they are gonna get sprayed. i agree with earlier comments that something must be up. we’ve seen one or two around for years but they never bothered us, heck i helped a couple get freedom outside when they wandered into my moms apt but these guys are aggressively hostile and i’m not taking chances with an 81 year old woman.
Posted 16 Jun 2011 at 10:07 am ¶
Anrkist wrote:
@kblank – They tend to move around in the heat of the day. The places I’ve typically seen them in are eaves and inside attics. However, if you have a patio that is above the ground, they may be under that.
I had the unfortunate pleasure of sitting on the edge of an above ground pool which was also home to a hive. Yes, they got me where you would expect.
In my experience with them, they are only aggressive when you are near a spot which MAY hold a nest. They might be thinking of building there or there might be one you don’t see.
But when they are just fluttering about on the grass, they never seem to mind me.
Posted 22 Jun 2011 at 9:16 pm ¶
Jamesw2 wrote:
Yes I have been around wasps all my life and not been not only stung but chased and attacked by red wasps. They don’t like being disturbed. when i mow grass they will chase me out of the area.
They burn worse than a tetanus shot and much worse than a black wasp. I learned to put ice pack on a sting as fast as possible. That seemed to stop the burning in a mater of a few minutes.
One more note I had been stung twice mowing my yard but on the third ( and after) time they just batted me on the head. But they did investigate my lawn mower for several minutes.
I have also mud wasps that are tolerant of my moving about the garage
OH! Anrkist
Posted 19 Jul 2011 at 6:37 pm ¶
ckyler wrote:
I honestly have to agree with the original sentiment. In doing lots of landscape work in Texas (Austin and Dallas) for the past several years, red wasps have been an almost a daily encounter. I’ve never thought of them as aggressive. I encounter these guys 10x as frequently as any other wasp except cicada killers, and have never been stung, whereas yellowjackets have gotten me half a dozen times. Especially right now, with the drought, they seem drawn towards areas with moisture, and I’ve almost grabbed one of them or stepped on one more times than I can count when changing hoses, turning on faucets, etc. They seem to be quite curious when I enter an area they’re in, and will circle around and sometimes buzz me, but I keep my cool (e.g. I don’t start flapping my arms, swatting at them) and they totally leave me alone. I can’t say a thing about how they behave when their nest is approached, because in all this time, working on acres and acres of different properties, I’ve never encountered a nest: not in abandoned sheds, eaves of the home–nowhere. I’ve always been mystified as to where their nests might be, so I’m believing the original post which said they live in *very* sheltered locations. Completely, totally surprised to come here and find everyone posting about how horrible these things are. They seem as benign as cicada killers. I’d trade all the damn yellow jackets in the world for more of these guys.
Posted 04 Aug 2011 at 12:44 pm ¶
bugman wrote:
Dear cyker,
Thank you so much for your valuable perspective. As a landscaper, it stands to reason that you would have had ample opportunity to be stung by Red Wasps if they were an aggressive species. Perhaps like beauty, aggression is in the eye of the beholder.
Posted 04 Aug 2011 at 5:34 pm ¶
Mandina wrote:
I grew up in Houston, and one of my earliest memories was being stung numerous times around my lip by red wasps when I was two. I was just out in the back yard, near a bush, when they attacked. I still remember the pain, and I was sick for a week. I remember this so vividly. I couldn’t go to a neighbor kid’s birthday party because I was still sick, but I remember someone walking over with a piece of birthday cake for me. We knew to be wary of any wasp, but especially the red one, after that. I’ve been somewhat allergic to wasps and bees ever since. If I get stung once in a great while, it’s not so bad. But if I get stung a couple times a year, for instance, I swell up for over a week. I respect life, and never kill anything without a reason, and I find insects fascinating. But I live in N. California now, and sure don’t miss the red wasps.
Posted 06 Aug 2011 at 11:34 am ¶
bugman wrote:
Thank you for your firsthand account.
Posted 06 Aug 2011 at 11:44 am ¶
Wasp Hater wrote:
Dont know where my lengthy message went but just want to say they are very aggressive and sting’S hurt much more than honey bee stings.
OH, KILL ALL RED WASPS!
Posted 20 Sep 2011 at 9:58 pm ¶

Trackbacks & Pingbacks 2

From Spider Vs. Wasp on 11 Jun 2010 at 1:21 pm ¶
[...] opinion, these Red Wasps pose no threat to your small child, but the wasps will protect their nest. Red Wasps | What's That Bug? I've no idea what kind of spider it is, other than dead. Do not argue with an idiot. He will [...]
From Wasps « Fancy Hollywood Frogs on 07 Jun 2011 at 1:16 pm ¶
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