Wasp Nest Removal With Poison Bait

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As a follow-up to the post about the new poison baits that can be deployed to eliminate threatening yellowjacket wasp nests, here are some details.

Bear in mind that while certain wasps can be dangerous, especially in late summer and early fall, all wasps are important predators of other insect pests. Only remove those wasp nests that are directly threatening such as nests located near picnic areas or playgrounds.

First, take a look at this article about Wasp Removal With Baits at the 'Bugs site for background information.

Start your baiting program in mid- to late summer, starting any earlier is probably a waste of time since wasp activity is generally too low for baits to be effective until mid-summer.

Poison baits are prepared from some kind of minced meat (canned tuna and canned cat food work well) plus Microencapsulated Onslaught Insecticide. This is the only current pesticide that I'm aware of that permits use for poison baits targeted at scavenger yellowjackets. Be certain that your bait station and placements are designed such as to prevent all non-target animals from accessing the bait. It is your responsibility to ensure that the poison bait is deployed so that only wasps can access it.

Once foraging wasps locate the poison bait they will carry a portion back to their nest (both aerial and ground nests) where it will be feed to developing brood and eventually the queen. You will probably notice a significant reduction in wasp activity in one to several weeks that should last all season.

Poison baits are only effective against scavenger species since non-scavenger species are only attracted to living prey, not canned tuna!

For outdoor events such as picnics and weddings you'll want to start your baiting program at least a week before the event (after mid-summer) to have the best chance of effectively reducing wasp activity prior to the event.


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