Have you seen stinging insects buzzing around your property and you’ve been wondering what they are? We’ve had several phone calls lately from people seeing more and more types of stinging insects around their Long Island and Nassau County homes and that’s because some stinging insect colonies reach their peak populations anytime between August and September. You may be seeing any number of stinging insects on your property; here are some questions we’ve been answering lately for our customers and hopefully they’ll help you identify the stinging insects on your NY or CT property.
Q: What are the most common stinging insects in our area?
A: In Long Island, Nassau County, Westchester County, the five boroughs, Fairfield County CT and throughout our service area, we regularly see many different stinging insects. They include yellow jackets, paper wasps, mud daubers, cicada killer wasps, digger bees, honey bees and carpenter bees. You’ll find the most aggressive of these is the yellow jacket, as they are interested in the foods you have at your barbecue or picnic and will hover around (and collect) any food you leave outdoors.
Q: There is a bee burrowing in wood beams on my property; what could this be?
A: That sounds like a carpenter bee. You probably don’t see a lot of of them, just the female that has burrowed into the wood and the male that is hanging out around the hole, acting ‘protective’. These insects are robust, approximately 1 inch long and a metallic blue/black color with a shiny abdomen. They often get confused for bumble bees, but aren’t hairy like bumble bees and other bees in NY. These insects can be a problem for you if they bore holes into your home’s structure and then return year after year, causing extensive structural damages over time.
Q: Are cicada killer wasps dangerous?
A: To cicadas, these wasps are dangerous, but to humans, they have been called ‘gentle giants’. They are large wasps that dig holes in the ground with the purpose of collecting paralyzed cicadas to feed to their developing larvae that are inside the burrow. They do have a significant stinger that can cause painful stings for humans, but they are not aggressive and don’t have the nest-guarding instinct of honey bees and hornets, so they aren’t normally considered dangerous, or at least, not to humans!
Q: I have stinging insect nests on my property. Can I get rid of them myself?
A: Please don’t! There may be DIY stinging insect control bombs or sprays on the market, but if used incorrectly and applied at the wrong time, the results can be disastrous. You don’t want these insects coming after you or your family members, as their stings can be extremely painful. Not only that, but some of these stinging insects can sting repeatedly, causing you to have a severe reaction, even if you don’t have a known allergy. Instead, call in the professionals to take care of your stinging insect problem.
If you live in Parkway’s extensive service area and you need stinging insect control for yellow jackets or any other stinging insects you may have seen on your NY property, contact the Long Island pest control professionals at Parkway today for information on our pest control services. We’ll be happy to talk to you about our pest control treatments and what can be done for your stinging insect problem!