Hornets

[sawman]

I havent seen any this year yet. But i saw some last year and managed to get stung twice on the arm while up an oak tree. we had a job felling 4 oaks on an old canal lift and unfortunataley there was a nest in a cavity on a large lateral branch, about 40 foot high (unseen). Felled that tree but it was the next day while putting a winch cable in the next tree that i encountered some really unhappy hornets looking for a new home. It was actually less painfull than i thoight it was going to be!! comparable to a wasp and less severe swelling. Totally scared the c**p out of me at the time though.

[Stereo]

We get loads here (South Devon). They nest in our house every year as it's a bar conversion which has not been re-pointed outside. I have to say we have never been stung but I do deal with any nests in the house as I have 3 young boys who play in the garden and that doesn't warrant thinking about. It maybe unfair on the beasties but there you go.

 

I have found them to be totally passive when I have encountered them and not aggressive at all (which makes me feel worse for zapping them). Last year I was up on the roof sweeping down the flue and clearing the capping when they all came out of a hole to say hello. Really quite difficult to not panic and fall to my death at that point but I managed to resolve myself to climbing down the ladder carefully, ignoring any stings. I didn't get even one though, I think they just wanted to see what I was up to.

 

A very mis-understood creature I think and I wonder if I should persecute them so harshly.

[arbogrunt]

they're just big and scary mate!...we get them in areas of North Essex, when I see more than 2 around a tree, I come back in winter time!

[Charlieh]

we must have a nest close to us, as on about 5 occassions we have had one visiting my shed to strip timber off it, you can hear it munching from several meters away,

 

wood wasps/horntails scare the hell out of me, despite knowing they cant sting you, when one takes off close to you you know about it at upto 6cm long they look huge

[FJ88]

I didnt realise hornets were endangered. I killed one in my kitchen the other day it was massive. One of my dogs tries to catch wasps and bees all the time so i didnt want a hench vet bill if he caught the hornet and got stung in the mouth or throat. They are amazing looking creatures but they're a bit to scary to leave lurking around the house untouched.

[RobRainford]

wood wasps/horntails scare the hell out of me, despite knowing they cant sting you, when one takes off close to you you know about it at upto 6cm long they look huge

 

they are like natures beastie helicopters! when i was doing CS32 up in penrith there were a lot of wood wasps around, when i saw the first one land on another guys crotch i thought it was going to bite his knackers off!

 

never had the pleasure of seeing or dealing with a hornet, stinging buzzy things arent my forte

[GreenGui]

We get them here all the time in Brittany. The fun thing to do if one wants to study them is leave a light on indoors during the summer, leave the window closed and the shutters open and they crawl all over the window. Damn huge.

 

The French tell us they particularly like Common Ash and advised us against planting an Ash coppice - we went ahead anyway...

[Fungus]

In The Netherlands, I have also seen them licking of the resin on the bark of Liquidambar styraciflua, on bleeding Acer or Betula after having been cut or damaged and on gum of Prunus.

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[David Humphries]

The first one was a drowsy Hornet seemingly coming out of hibernation amongst some decayed ash wood.

 

Next couple were sniffing around the base of an old Oak.

 

The last few shots were a big chap (possibly just a very large wasp) appearing to imbibe in a spot of drydeus gutation.

 

Not sure if it was just after liquid refreshment or perhaps something more specific.

 

 

the above were all from last year, but I have seen a fair few about over the last 3 or 4 weeks.

 

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[blazer]

Love Horntails - totally harmless. Working away a few years ago and some Hornets flew by, like small aircraft zooming close by but they didn't buzz around me like wasps, these guys were on a straight line to their mission. Feeling brave ok I was after 'man points' with my son we followed them back to their nest, and found I could stand say 1m from the entrance keep still and quiet and they ignored me.

 

A few weeks later on a group fungus trip I found another Hornet nest, I told some of the families of the nest and to keep quiet, who totally ignored me and let there daughter walk up to the nest and she promply screamed - instantly the whole Hornet gang came out to attack her. She ran off screaming so all the more Hornets joined in by now she had Hornets in the goldilocks. I took her away from the nest area and started brushing them off her plus remove them from her hair. Afterwards still upset it turned out she hadn't been bitten nor me or anybody else.

 

When my working cocker was a pup, he went off in the woods and came back with biting wasps on his back, I picked them off but felt he had been stung so left him on my coat for a rest - not realizing he was in danger, he slept for an hour or so then was ok. Later on an early shoot day the keepers dog bit an apple with a wasp on and in 10 minuites went totally flat in his arms. Luckly the under keeper has a reaction to wasps and kept some 'anti- histomeme' on his quad - they pushed 2 tablets down the dogs throat and slowly the dog recovered recovered.

 

Since them I keep a strip of 'anti- histomene' * on the back of my mobile phone. *ok I can't spell - I'm are a engineer.