To celebrate the wasps have returned 👏

[Goingmadddd]

Until This year I did not understand the purpose of wasps.

If you didn’t know… they eat flies.

And after the WORST fly year in history. I had so many different species I actually tried to count them all. Who is celebrating the return of the wasps with me?

I had a wasps nest and they ate through my ceiling. Was a nightmare. I hate them

What plant is that, if you don't mind my asking?

I’ll be honest I was just worried this year in general as I’ve never seen so few wasps and bees.

I have lots, they like to drink from my pond 😊

A couple of years ago they built a nest in an old bird nesting box on our patio. It was brilliant watching them & none of us got stung. When they'd all died off I took the nest out & framed it 😊

I also get lots of solitary bees and have to buy more bee boxes every year 😊

I appreciate their right to exist and as pollinators. That's it. They can stay the hell away from my lunch, annoying, persistent little sods.

Exactly. Until this summer I would have been team flie. But until you have truly experienced a fly deluge then you won’t get it! They are hideous! And even more persistent at getting at food.

Wasps do not eat flies. Wasps feed flies to their larvae.

Ohhhh, so it’s the wasp larvae. Not the wasps eating fly larvae?

Apologies people 😅

I loathe wasps. They are flying sharks, cruising round, looking for victims. I've been stung twice and both times I wasn't doing anything to annoy them.

We are currently experiencing a fly deluge and it's hideous. We have a little set of steps going up under an archway next to a pond and it's full of them. Big clouds of buzzy fat fuckers flying every which way and I have to walk through them to get to the rest of the garden. We have nicknamed it the tunnel of flies. I can't find anything food related that's attracting them, they just seem to like being near the water and the relatively cool air. It's only a couple of metres from our kitchen door but they show no interest in coming in, in fact if one gets accidentally trapped inside it asks to go out by banging its head repeatedly on the window. I have a horrible suspicion they're coming here to have sex.

If wasps could make the slightest dent in this plague I'd be their biggest fan but no, they're all too busy getting pissed on next door's fallen apples.

I’m currently in Austria and there are loads of wasps. I asked one of the waiters about it - he said they had none last season and they are pleased as it shows it will be a harsh winter, so the snow will be good. No idea if this is true!

I will stop short of celebrating,having had one down my blouse at school which stung me on my neck and boobs, and also one inside a coke can which stung under my lip causing me to be so swollen that my nose and cheek were flat on that side! That said, I will happily trap them and put them back outside (unlike my pension age brother who still runs round like a toddler, flapping his hands if one comes within 5 feet!)