Comments on: Buzz off! BOOM! Exploding yellow jacket nests?

Question: Buzz off! BOOM! Exploding yellow jacket nests?

workerant — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 14:36:34 -0800

Why are yellow jacket nests in my area (Great Smoky Mountains, East Tennessee) apparently exploding? I have found four nests within ten miles of each other that are completely, well, exploded. What's doing this? Pictures inside.

Last weekend and again today I found what appear to be the remains of yellow jacket nests. All four of these nests are adjacent to a well-maintained hiking trail. The nests are dead with no survivors to be seen. All that remains is a hole in the ground with earth mounded around it and fragments of papery comb spread in a 5- or 6-foot radius.

No tool (like a shovel) or paw/claw marks have been evident, though fall rains might have wiped them away. If this is an animal, it's a colossal badass and spoiling for a fight. I'd like to know what might have done this and why, since yellow jackets don't make honey. If it's a pest control product I'd like to know what it is because it beats the pants off the ol' gasoline-and-match method.

Shot of the nest (Sorry, blurry.)
Pieces of comb scattered around the crater
Closeup of the papery comb

With no survivors I'm not 100% sure these were yellow jacket nests but if they're not I don't know what else they could be. The only other ground-nesting bee-type-thing I know around here are digger bees, and these exploded nests don't look like digger bee colonies.

By: facetious

facetious — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 15:04:14 -0800

could it be kids with m-80's?

By: Red Loop

Red Loop — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 15:08:03 -0800

Bears.

By: KokuRyu

KokuRyu — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 15:08:43 -0800

Bears.

By: Red Loop

Red Loop — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 15:09:39 -0800

That is, black bears dig up the nests and eat the larvae, apparently inured (enough) to the stings.

By: Sabby

Sabby — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 15:10:04 -0800

I saw a segment on either Nova or Nature about trying to eradicate the yellow jacket in Hawaii and the method used was to dig up the nest and capture the queen, so maybe that is what is going on?

By: Red Loop

Red Loop — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 15:13:51 -0800

Oh, I think skunks and racoons will sometimes do it also (maybe a few other mammals, too).

By: tommasz

tommasz — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 15:29:10 -0800

The drought resulted in a population boom of yellow jackets. They thrive in dry weather since rain interferes with their paper nest building. It's a bountiful banquet for predators.

By: cmoj

cmoj — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 15:44:33 -0800

Yeah, skinks and badgers will do this too. Helpful hint: if you ever have a problem yellow jacket nest, go out at dusk when they're inactive and pour some honey on it. It'll help attract a skunk or badger. Probably wouldn't hurt the cha ces of a bear showing up either.

By: instamatic

instamatic — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 16:15:57 -0800

And then you have to ask yourself: which would I rather have nearby, yellow jackets, or skunks and bears? Hmmm... Tough call.

By: workerant

workerant — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 16:59:40 -0800

We don't have badgers here but we surely have a surfeit of bears, and they definitely meet the definition of "badass and spoiling for a fight." This is an exceptionally good year for the bears' Fall Shuffle so it didn't occur to me that they'd bother with such a painful meal as yellow jacket larvae. Thanks everybody!