One for Mary if she's lurking.

Found this monster crawling around on our landing this evening. What is it?

http://82.24.136.66/~john/wasp-or-hornet/img_3513.jpg
more pix at
http://82.24.136.66/~john/wasp-or-hornet

It doesn't look so big in the pictures but it's inside a beer glass (sans
beer :-) and about 30mm from snout to tail.

On Wed, 09 Nov 2005 21:45:39 GMT, wrote:

Found this monster crawling around on our landing this evening. What
is it?

Looks like a Queen wasp to me. Shee will have come into hibernate.
Hornets are really big beggers, 40mm would be on the small side 50mm
average.

--
Cheers
Dave. pam is missing e-mail

In message ,
writes
One for Mary if she's lurking.

Found this monster crawling around on our landing this evening. What is it?

http://82.24.136.66/~john/wasp-or-hornet/img_3513.jpg
more pix at
http://82.24.136.66/~john/wasp-or-hornet

It doesn't look so big in the pictures but it's inside a beer glass (sans
beer :-) and about 30mm from snout to tail.

Shake it and stick it in your keks ...

looks like a wasp to me, as I think that hornets have a proportionally
longer abdomen

ICBW

--
geoff

Is it very hairy? All the hornets I have seen, and I'm pleased to say I saw
one in our garden this year for the first time, appeared to have quite a
hairy thorax and a tendency towards a brownish yellow colouring rather than
bright yellow as in wasps.

Henry

wrote in message
...

Found this monster crawling around on our landing this evening. What
is it?

I'm no expert but...
The brown head rather than black makes me vote for hornet.

Hornets have become quite rare, my Readers Digest book says they have
almost disappeared from south-east and central England. Their large
size -32 mm and loud buzzing when flying can make them frightening,
but those I've seen tend to keep to themselves very high in the trees
and not trouble humans.

The book also quotes W.H.Hudson writing in 'Hampshire Days', 1903,
saying these October Hornets are all females, wanderers from ruined
homes, in search if sheltered places, where foodless and homeless each
may live though the winter months.

IMO you should do all you can to help it survive the winter.

I suggest transfering it to an open wooden outside structure from
which it can easily escape when spring comes. As you probably
realise it may become quite lively in your heated home, so perhaps you
may calm it down by cooling it off outside or in the fridge (with a
notice on the door!).

Roger

wrote in message
...
One for Mary if she's lurking.

Found this monster crawling around on our landing this evening. What is
it?

http://82.24.136.66/~john/wasp-or-hornet/img_3513.jpg
more pix at
http://82.24.136.66/~john/wasp-or-hornet

It doesn't look so big in the pictures but it's inside a beer glass (sans
beer :-) and about 30mm from snout to tail.

That looks like a wasp to me. Hornets are bigger and really nasty. I have
had a wasps nest in a cavity wall and had to get someone out to kill them
off. The following year they found a way in through an air vent and built a
large nest under a floor around central heating pipes. The nest was around
1ft wide and 2 1/2ft long when I took the floorboard up to spray them with
wasp killer. I soon hammered the floor board back down quickly. The noise
of them was amazing! I also found a small cone hanging in the loft and give
that a blast with wasp killer. They have never returned fortuntely.
I didn't mind them being there, but they do cause damage by chewing up wood
to form the nest. In all the cases they chewed up an old tree stump in the
garden.
Best advice is to kill them as soon as possible.
If you do find massive hornets, get your local council as the stings can
hurt, especilly if they all start having a bite!

On Wed, 09 Nov 2005 21:45:39 GMT, wrote:

One for Mary if she's lurking.

Found this monster crawling around on our landing this evening. What is it?

http://82.24.136.66/~john/wasp-or-hornet/img_3513.jpg
more pix at
http://82.24.136.66/~john/wasp-or-hornet

It doesn't look so big in the pictures but it's inside a beer glass (sans
beer :-) and about 30mm from snout to tail.

probably a queen looking for a winter berth, hence the large size.

In article ,
says...
One for Mary if she's lurking.

Found this monster crawling around on our landing this evening. What is it?

http://82.24.136.66/~john/wasp-or-hornet/img_3513.jpg
more pix at
http://82.24.136.66/~john/wasp-or-hornet

It doesn't look so big in the pictures but it's inside a beer glass (sans
beer :-) and about 30mm from snout to tail.


Looks like a wasp to me - the hornets I've seen are more like small
helicopters than large wasps.

wrote:

One for Mary if she's lurking.

Found this monster crawling around on our landing this evening. What is
it?

http://82.24.136.66/~john/wasp-or-hornet/img_3513.jpg
more pix at
http://82.24.136.66/~john/wasp-or-hornet

It doesn't look so big in the pictures but it's inside a beer glass (sans
beer :-) and about 30mm from snout to tail.

Thanks all for your replies (though no sign of Mary - maybe she's out
wassailing :-).

I put it out in some bushes to fend for itself.

john.stumbles wrote:
john.stumbles wrote:

One for Mary if she's lurking.

I put it out in some bushes to fend for itself.

So a nice wasps nest for someone or a load more of em next year then :/

I'd look after a bee. I like honey

P.

john.stumbles wrote:
One for Mary if she's lurking.

She's not, however she may have morphed into John Cartmell.


Found this monster crawling around on our landing this evening. What is it?

http://82.24.136.66/~john/wasp-or-hornet/img_3513.jpg

Looks like a European Hornet to me.

On Wed, 9 Nov 2005 23:04:27 -0000, Roger R wrote:

The brown head rather than black makes me vote for hornet.

I think the colour rendition of the images leaves a little to be
desired. Funny colour balance due to tungsten light making everything
rather orange.

--
Cheers
Dave. pam is missing e-mail

I put it out in some bushes to fend for itself.

So a nice wasps nest for someone or a load more of em next year then :/


Do you have any idea how many flies a wasps nest will devour in a year?

I'd rather have few wasps than lots of flies, at least until september when
the social control of the nest begins to break down and the buggers start
getting ****ed on rotten fruit and acting like chavs :-)

Henry

Henry wrote:
Do you have any idea how many flies a wasps nest will devour in a year?

Yes - none.

"Chris Bacon" wrote in message
...
Henry wrote:
Do you have any idea how many flies a wasps nest will devour in a year?

Yes - none.

Yeah yeah of course the "nest", as in the structure itself, eats none but
the grubs inside eat shed loads, you pedantic twerp.

Henry

Henry wrote:
"Chris Bacon" wrote...
Henry wrote:
Do you have any idea how many flies a wasps nest will devour in a year?
Yes - none.

Yeah yeah of course the "nest", as in the structure itself, eats none but
the grubs inside eat shed loads, you pedantic twerp.


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= *WARNING* Acute Sense Of Humour Failure Detected!!!! =
* *
= This response contains a radiation pulse targeted at =
* your computer - fifteen seconds after reading this *
= your knob will drop off - have a nice day! =
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Dave Liquorice wrote:

On Wed, 9 Nov 2005 23:04:27 -0000, Roger R wrote:

The brown head rather than black makes me vote for hornet.

I think the colour rendition of the images leaves a little to be
desired. Funny colour balance due to tungsten light making everything
rather orange.

Yes, sorry, actually tungsten halogen so not quiet as yellow is it could
have been but in the excitement I didn't think to set the right colour
balance.