Big, scary hornets - worse than the eurowasp?

If they are euro wasps, do they die of in winter, then I could just mortar up the hole?

Depends whats on t’other side…

Any chance of a picture?

Thanks Thumper and PPTVB. The nest is actually in a crack in the mortar and in to the chimney lining. Not one of the clay external looking nests. Does that still sound like paper wasps?

VYBerlinaV8_the_one_they_all_copy said :

Apparently the spider wasps paralyse the spider for the purpose of laying it’s larvae inside the spider’s body will it’s still alive. Nice.

That’s why, when you see one of these beasties carting a huge spider away to it’s burrow, the spider isn’t all scrunched up with it’s legss all folded in, it just looks kind of limp and, well, paralysed.
Had one at mine a while back that spent a good few hours trying to drag a big fat huntsman up into a hole under the eaves and kept dropping the spider just as it was getting to the top. Bloody frustrating to watch, but buggered if I was going out to help either party!

Apparently the spider wasps paralyse the spider for the purpose of laying it’s larvae inside the spider’s body will it’s still alive. Nice.

If you think those paper wasps are bad, you should try getting stung by a couple of those European wasps (look kind of like bees, but bigger and blacker). I thought I was going to die. Or pass out from pain. Either way, I wanted to die for a while there.

I once destroyed a large nest using a can of WD-40 and a cigarette lighter. It was altogether too much fun to be appropriate.

That pic of the wasp and the huntsman was pretty cool. Also, I once got stung by a wasp on the back near the shoulder as a teen, and holy crap it hurt.

Aaah, yes – THOSE tips. I’ve been trying (to no avail) to find something legal that will keep them away (asides from engine oil – tends to be a bit messy).

I’ve gone nuts on wasps with a spray can of bug killer sprayed over a lighter flame. It’s great fun, but it’s really not a particularly smart thing to do.

Insecticide can just make them angry. For wasps nest, IMO petrol works best (from a small water squirter). One spray on the nest (in the early morning, when they’re a bit dozy) – instant death, no attacks, and they don’t return.

(Good idea to stub out your cigarette first)

Tylers,
Early morning is best. They are a little more docile in the cooler hours.
You can get specific wasp insecticides that have a 15m spray on them.
It gives you a head start.
You will need it.
They will chase you.
They hurt!

Aggies’ tips for getting rid of snakes tend to be illegal, unfortunately. They invovle things like 1080, milk, and bird netting.

Hey Ant, what tips did you get for keeping snakes away?

I don’t think these are the one at my place, but there are either been or wasps making a nest in a crack in the bricks near my chimney. Does anyone know if this kind of thing could case bad structural damage to my house?

ikarus said :

awesome!

HOLY ****!

awesome!

I have to admit I didn’t read that part till after I posted the link… I was relieved that they did not too care about our watching though!

While I am concerned about an insect website that writes ‘the wasp then flied away’, I think we’ve settled on a ‘safe’ spider wasp.

The ones I saw in NT were eating spiders too, but they seemed a bit more aggressive.

Looks like the spider wasp (funny that as it was eating a large huntman when I saw it!)

Linky

QL2 said :

Try here, see if you can identify it. http://www.austmus.gov.au/factsheets/#insects

Otherwise, we’re trying to guess what solar system a ufo is from (“well I’m pretty sure it had flashing lights….”).

Thanks for that post, QL2.

After reading that, I’m almost certain that it was a Spider Wasp.

Try here, see if you can identify it. http://www.austmus.gov.au/factsheets/#insects

Otherwise, we’re trying to guess what solar system a ufo is from (“well I’m pretty sure it had flashing lights….”).

Did it look like this?

five post black-head!

; )

“Sounds like a massive moth”

I wish. No, definetely in the wasp, hornet family of scary mean mothers. The blackness has a shimmer to it. Not the sort of thing you want landing on you….. or in fact in the same suburb. 🙂

phototext said :

There was a bigass thing in my yard the other week, scared the bejeezuz out of me. Huge, size of a truck.

Not the usual wasp looking like creature, but black body, thick and mean looking to boot. About the size of a Cicada.

Anyone know what these creatures from hell are, they wasps ?

Sounds like a massive moth. I have seen them the size of my fist. As for Thumper, i can sympathise with being bitten on the neck by a wasp, that hurts like hell. Felt like being punched in the neck!

I love them being around, at my place they seem to specifically target large spiders.

Every time I see one venturing into a spider’s lair I’m reminded of Frodo v Shelob.

Plus they look kewl.

There was a bigass thing in my yard the other week, scared the bejeezuz out of me. Huge, size of a truck.

Not the usual wasp looking like creature, but black body, thick and mean looking to boot. About the size of a Cicada.

Anyone know what these creatures from hell are, they wasps ?

Is this what you are seeing?

Gosh i was just to post some photos of what i think is the same bug as you are talking about.
I saw it drag a massive dead huntsman across our yard in less than 5 min. It even carried it up and over the fence.

Pretty scary looking thing about 1 1/5 inches long mostly black with some orange?

Does any one know if they are particularly dangerous to humans or dogs?

Lots of nasties around this year, it seems. I sprung a brown snake at unfortunately close quarters yesterday, not happy about that. How do you get rid of snakes? Go ask on a farmers’ forum! I now have several methods.

Nah, it’s a different one.

It says those ones only eat caterpillars.

Yeah, I saw a nice big one tucking into a huntsman the other day. I had a look on the internet and found this page, but as I too haven’t taken a picture I can’t compare to see if it was exactly the same one.

I saw one in my garden two days ago, in Charnwood.

The scary part was, it was dragging away a spider it had killed. A decent sized one too.