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Comment by Skwid | Hacker News Reader

I see a lot of advice being given in these comments, and I find it a little alarming that my own preference hasn't got a mention. Just leave them be? I've had plenty of wasp nests in sheds, roof spaces, garages etc and never had a problem peacefully coexisting with them. Almost everyone I've spoken to about it shares this sentiment, and generally wouldn't do anything about it unless it was in an especially risky location.

I get the impression most commenters here are from the US, whilst I live in the UK. Am I naive to the aggression of American wasps, or is it just more acceptable to kill creatures you find bothersome over there?

Does anyone with experience both sides of the pond have any insight?

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Maybe you have friendlier wasps in the UK, but the common ones in the US (yellowjackets, mud daubers, etc.) are generally very aggressive, and trying to coexist with them will end badly sooner or later.

I'm vegetarian because of personal ethics. I safely capture and release spiders I find in the house. I use live traps for mice and rats, and release them in the woods. But most wasps here are on my "nip the problem in the bud" list, along with termites, Scotch Broom, and a few other things.

I leave non-aggressive wasps, like Great Golden Diggers, alone.

I don't know, but I've never had trouble with mud daubers.

In my experience (and wikipedia), mud daubers aren't aggressive. You may have misidentified a species or had an uncommon experience. They prey on spiders so I consider them beneficial. Only real issue with them is that they clog up mechanisms with mud.

What's wrong with Scotch Broom? It looks lovely, and I was thinking of planting some.

It's invasive.

From Wikipedia:

In North America, Scotch broom was frequently planted in gardens, and was later used for erosion control along highway cuts and fills. Scotch broom is slightly toxic and unpalatable to livestock, and its seeds are viable for up to ten years, allowing them to regrow many years later, after extermination of the plant.

If you have (young) kids, having active/plentiful wasps nearby might just not work. Wasps can be scary, especially to children who have been stung before, and they are super-impractical around kids eating/snacking, too. "Close your mouth and relax" just doesn't get through to a scared kid, in my experience. :|

> Am I naive to the aggression of American wasps

Yes. Yellow jackets are very aggressive. Having them live in or next to your house is just asking for an injury.

Part of the difference might be our obsession with sugary foods and drink. There are several different kinds of wasps here. Paper wasps and mud daubers are not all that aggressive and you can ignore them, unless you have a sugary drink outside. Then they will fly unnoticed into your soda can and you have a surprise next time you take a sip. If you stay calm and spit out the wasp quickly enough, they probably won't sting you. If you panic (like kids tend to do), they will sting the inside of your mouth.

The other part might come from having different types of wasps. The ones in the article look like yellowjackets, which are extremely aggressive. They also tend to nest in holes in the ground. Yellowjackets are bad news because if you accidentally step close to their nest they will swarm you, often getting multiple stings in even if you are quick to run away.

Where I live, bald-faced hornets and yellowjackets are very aggressive. Yellowjackets will also build nests inside of structures, in the ground, etc. where it's sometimes very difficult to even know they are there until it's too late.

This is much different than honey bees and other types of wasps who are much less likely to attack just by being near them.

No experience in the uk, but I might be able to explain. YellowJackets are wasps, I'm calling them out specifically; wasp is used for other species.

Wasps nest under the eaves of houses all the time. If they're not near an entryway, usually people leave them alone as long as the nest stays small.

Yellow jackets do not nest under the eaves of a house. They burrow in the ground (or walls) where you can't see them or the nest size. They're also particularly aggressive and will swarm if you step on their nest.

YJs are more aggressive and territorial than a normal "wasp" with the added bonus of sometimes they just swarm you out of nowhere.

The wasp nest from ops article was inside of their front door jamb. Basically anyone visiting the front door during daylight hours would be attacked by a swarm of wasps that thought their nest was being disturbed.

European here, more than once I have been stuck by a yellow jacket for the simple crime of staying outside, minding my own business. My father was very badly stung because he accidentally disturbed a (hidden) nest. So I hate them with a passion. They also kill honeybees if you want another reason.

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