What just bit me?

[Tazzie]

I was stung on the hand and face by wasps a couple of hours ago. I don't think they can be hu-tou-feng, since my swelling isn't so bad, and I've seen hu-tou-feng and these are not them. But I'd still like to know what bit me. I feel I could ID the culprits if I saw them in a police lineup.

I have seen these sort before. They're not hyper aggressive, I don't think. I got bit on the hand because I picked up a stool under which they've been building a nest. The second bite was more or less my fault. One was flying near me after I retreated and I took a swipe at it with a broom, so the little bastard flew up and gave me a kiss on the cheek. It was a fair fight and I lost.

Anyone know of a good website detailing common wasps in Taiwan?

[Super Hans]

Paper wasp. Not especially dangerous unless you get anaphylaxis from their venom.



Probably Hymenoptera Vespidae - type that in to google and see what you get. Hope your swelling goes down - it is never nice to get stung by any insect.

[Tazzie]

Btw, the stool -- two old plastic ones -- are still lying outside where I dropped them. I walked by a while ago and saw the nest. I want to get rid of them. Any ideas of how I can without getting bit again>

Paper wasps sound about right -- here's what wikipedia says:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polistes_chinensis

I think that's probably them.

[Dragonbones]

Wasp spray.

[Tazzie]

Would that just piss them off again?

[Super Hans]

Tazzie, if you want to remove the nest, follow this cistern:

To get rid of the nest, observe the nest to see if the wasp(s) have come back. If no wasp, you can move the stool and nest carefully to a different location (several meters away) and then remove the nest by hand and burn it. When constructing their nests, these wasps will fly away making trips for construction materials leaving you time to get at the nest.
It will be difficult to smoke the nest without melting the stool, but an alternative option is to spray it and leave it for a few hours with insect repellent, but you need to make sure that you don't aggravate any wasps that are still around when you spray.
If you are not confident in doing this, ask a neighbor or call the fire brigade. It's a bit overkill to do that, but it is part of their job to remove nests and you are within your right to call them.

[Dragonbones]

I was under the impression that specialized wasp sprays are designed to spray a very focused jet of spray a long distance so that you can keep a safe distance from the wasps when you do it, and that the sprays stun and kill the wasps very quickly, again for your safety. I could be wrong, though. You could wear very heavy clothing and a wide-brimmed hat with cheesecloth draped from the brim to your shoulders so that the wasps can't get at you, if you're particularly worried.

[Tazzie]

That sounds exactly right, in fact. I use stools frequently and the nest was not there last week, or it was small and I didn't disturb them.

I won't bother the fire brigade with this. We save those calls for cobras and Hu-tou-feng. I'm going to leave the nest where it is till tomorrow and then try to remove it as you have described.

Thanks for the helpful responses.

[Super Hans]

I was under the impression that specialized wasp sprays are designed to spray a very focused jet of spray a long distance so that you can keep a safe distance from the wasps when you do it, and that the sprays stun and kill the wasps very quickly, again for your safety.

It depends on the quality I think. Plus, there is the hazard of returning wasps that weren't sprayed which get angry when their latest construction project has been fumigated.

[Tazzie]

I was under the impression that specialized wasp sprays are designed to spray a very focused jet of spray a long distance so that you can keep a safe distance from the wasps when you do it, and that the sprays stun and kill the wasps very quickly, again for your safety. I could be wrong, though. You could wear very heavy clothing and a wide-brimmed hat with cheesecloth draped from the brim to your shoulders so that the wasps can't get at you, if you're particularly worried.

Ah, I didn't know about the sprays. I think I'll remove the nest tomorrow without spray, but will dress the part as you describe.