Winter Wasps

[lillypigs]

Hi everyone, just wondering if anyone other than me is having a problem with wasps/ not in the summer, I mean now, January! they are raiding my hives and presumably taking winter stores, although the inspection board showed lots of wings and legs from the bees so they may have had them too. Are wasps too big to get through a queen excluder? I've put out a trap and caught a couple, but they are much more interested in the hive. Any ideas? ( not yet found the nest)

 

[FreeFall]

I had lots of wasp problems up until around mid-December but they soon died off after the Ivy finished and the only ones I've seen have been sleepy queens in the woodshed.

I think I'm right in saying that there is very little chance of there being an occupied nest at this time of year, as they won't be reproducing (unlike honeybees, they don't keep a colony going over winter).

Do you have clear crownboards? If so, can you see any bees at all? I'm wondering if the wasps are actually living in there.

Nick

 

[enrico]

Like nick...I wonder if you have wasps rather than bees! I can't believe there are still wasps nests around despite the mild winter, they die off and only leave queens. Something seems wrong!
E

 

[Tom Bick]

Every time I have visited my assocciation apiary this winter I have seen the odd wasp and they seem to like my hive. Not been for a couple of weeks but will go on Saturday to see if they are still around. They seem very small to me and I may be wrong but perhaps the native wasp and not that larger French one?

 

[Suzi Q]

Same as Freefall I had a wasp problem up until mid December, haven't seen any since then.

 

[Luminos]

There was "A wasp" lurking on the varroa tray after OA on one of my hives...
...not for long though...

 

[drstitson]

we were unrolling an electric fence (that had been outside all autumn) 3 weeks back when OH discovered this paper wasp nest with 8 or so very much alive residents.