Yellow Jacket Wasp
There are several species of yellow jackets found in Australia, and they are known for the yellow and black stripes on their body. Yellow jackets are social wasps, which means they build their nest in colonies and live together with other yellow wasps. Yellow jackets are known for their aggressive behaviour, and they will sting if they feel threatened. Their sting can be painful and may cause an allergic reaction in some people.
Yellow jacket wasps are most active during the summer and early fall months. The old colonies will die off, and the new queens will start constructing new colonies. You can call our wasp removal Perth experts to get rid of them if they are building nests on your property.
The Appearance of Yellow Jacket Wasps:
Yellow jacket wasps have a distinctive appearance that makes it easier to identify and differentiate from other wasps.
- Size: They are typically small, a fully grown adult wasp measures between 10-16 mm in length.
- Colouration: They have black and yellow stripes on their body, with alternating bands of black and yellow.
- Body shape: Yellow jackets have a narrow, elongated body that is characteristic of most wasp species. They have a defined waist area, called the petiole, that separates the thorax and abdomen.
- Wing: They have two pairs of wings with a dark brown colour or transparent in some species.
- Head: Yellow jackets have relatively large heads with compound eyes and strong mandibles for grasping and cutting prey.
The Life Cycle And Habits Of Yellow Jackets:
- Queen emergence: In the spring, the queen yellow jacket emerges from the overwintering site. She will typically have mated the previous fall and will now be looking for a suitable location to establish her colony.
- Nest building: The queen begins constructing a small, papery nest from wood fibres and saliva. She lays her first batch of eggs and tends to them until they hatch into larvae.
- Larvae development: The queen feeds the larvae a diet of protein-rich insects, such as caterpillars and flies. The larvae grow rapidly, shedding their skin several times as they develop.
- Cocoons: The larvae spin cocoons and pupate.
- Adults: After a few days adult wasps emerge out of the cocoon and take over the task of protecting and maintaining nests, and taking care of larvae.
- Colony growth: As the colony grows the workers build additional layers onto the nest and the queen lays more eggs.
- Reproductive phase: In late summer, the queen begins laying eggs that will develop into males and new queens. These individuals mate and new queens leave the colony over winter, while the rest of the colonies die off with the onset of cold weather.
- Overwintering: The new queens seek out protected locations such as under tree bark or in the soil to overwinter. The following spring they emerge and begin a new cycle.
In terms of habits, yellow jackets are social wasps, the colonies are led by queens, and the worker wasps forage for food, care for the young, and defend the nest against intruders. They are carnivorous and are known for their aggressive behaviour.
Book A Professional Team For Yellow Jackets Wasp Removal
As not all surroundings may be appropriate for the wasp treatment process, you can risk getting hurt if you try to enter any of these areas on your own. We start by determining the kind of wasps that require treatment. The method of wasp treatment varies depending on the species of wasp. Once the wasp has been located, we will suggest a course of treatment to you. You can book a professional wasp control Perth team with us.