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Hornet nest

Started by Tobacco Plug, December 15, 2003, 03:21:58 PM

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Tobacco Plug

I found a hornet nest in a tree near the house.  I would like to cut if from the limb it is on and bring it home to hang in my hall.  However, I am concerned that it may still be inhabited by the hornets. :o  Does anyone know of a way to tell if it is empty or not?
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Furby

Hate to say it but, take it inside and let it warm up.  ;D  ::)

Really, if it's still in good shape with no holes (other then the entrance), it's probly still being used. I think there are a few ways to dispose of them, although I can't remember them right now.

Jeff

Entomology Department > Iowa Insect Notes
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"Printing, copying and distributing this information as it originally appeared is permitted"

Preserving and Displaying a Hornet's Nest
The Baldfaced Hornet is a social wasp found in the familiar large, gray, paper nests attached to a tree branch, shrub, utility pole or house. The paper-like nests are made of chewed wood fiber mixed with saliva. Hornet nests are frequently displayed in nature centers, schools, and natural history museums. They can also be displayed in the home as a conversation piece! Below are answers to the most common questions about displaying a hornetís nest.


How is the nest collected? The easiest method of collecting a nest is to wait until after the hornets have abandoned the nest in the fall (after the first hard freeze or by late October). Hornet nests are annual; they last one summer and all occupants freeze or die of old age in the fall. Collect the nest as soon as possible because exposed, unprotected nests are subject to destruction by wildlife and weather. Collecting a nest in summer requires a degree of boldness. During the coolest part of the night and with the least disturbance possible, rapidly slip a large plastic bag over the nest. Close the bag around the limb above the nest. Tie the bag shut and cut the limb from the tree. Kill the hornets by placing the entire bag in a freezer overnight.


Will I get stung from hornets that emerge from a collected nest? There will be few, if any hornets in a nest collected in late fall. If you feel the need to be extra-cautious, leave the nest in a garage or porch where it will be protected from the weather until mid-winter. Then bring the nest indoors.


Will the nest smell bad? The carcasses of hornets and larvae that remain in a collected nest may produce a mild odor before they completely dry up. If this is unacceptable, leave the nest in a protected outdoor location as mentioned above.


Does the nest need to be treated with varnish to preserve it? No. It is not necessary to treat the collected nest in any way. The nest will last almost indefinitely if it is suspended in a dry location where it will not be damaged by handling or vibration.


Will new hornets emerge from eggs that hatch after the nest is hung indoors? No. Hornet eggs laid inside the nest by the queen hatch into grublike larvae that must be fed and cared for by the workers. If any eggs hatched indoors the tiny larvae would perish.


Note: this information is valid for Iowa. It may or may not apply in your area.

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DanG

I had a Yellow Jacket problem not long ago, and found that the "roach fogger" bombs worked well on them. I stuck a piece of plastic tubing on a small funnel and inserted it into the opening of the nest at night, then set the bomb off and held it to the funnel. Zapped'em all. :)
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Corley5

I've been told to give a nest a good shot of some sort of wasp and hornet killer before you warm it up.  One of the teachers at school didn't do this and had to abandon her classroom for a while until the bugs were taken care of.  The nest warmed up and they came back to life.  This may have been before it got really cold though
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ScottAR

A friend of mine found a hornet nest one winter.  He put it in a big garbage bag and stuck it in the deep freezer for a month or so...   No bugs and no stinky stuff either...
Scott
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Furby

Jeff,
Good info, thanks!
Now I HAVE to try this!  ;D

The thing with the sprays is they usually damage the nest. Not a problem if you're just getting rid of them, but if you want to save the nest.......

Tobacco Plug

Thanks for the great information, Jeff.  Now I just have to borrow a pole pruner to reach that limb!
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EZ

Before cold weather sets in, the queen hornet leaves the nest and builds herself a small nest for the winter. After she leaves the main nest the others die because of desersion.
EZ

MrMoo

When I was a kid we had a bees nest in a big blueberry bush in the yard. When it got cold we cut the branch & brought it in. It got hung near a light. After the light was on a while bees started to come out of it. The nest went back outside.

Bro. Noble

Lewis,

That doesn't sound good------needing a pole to reach that nest.  Isn't that a prediction of how much snow there's gonna be?---------how high off the ground they build their nest :o

EZ,

That's interesting about that queen hornet.  Sounds like the makings of a movie :D :D    Well,  there's been a lot of movies made with less of a plot than that ::)
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Furby

I just saw this ad in our local paper:

link
Hmmmmmm, could save you some trouble.  ;)  But you would miss all the fun!  ;)  :D

Tobacco Plug

Bro Noble,  If the snow gets that deep, we are all in for some trouble!  The nest is about 20 feet high.  The most snow I have ever seen around here is 26 inches.  I think that enough snow to reach the nest would constitute a climate change!
A friend and I took a pole pruner and a six foot stepladder and tried to get the nest to day.  It was just out of reach.  My friend is going to bring his extension ladder sometime after Christmas and we will get it then.
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pappy

QuoteThe most snow I have ever seen around here is 26 inches


we got that in a 12 hour period last Monday  :D  :D  :D

I got a big nest on the back porch about 12" tall, when I got it the hornets were gone.  I sprayed it with about a half can of hair spray, darkened it a mite but staying together good.

termite
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Stephen_Wiley

Just curious Lewis,

How big is this nest ?

Sweveral years ago in the summer, one of my old hunting partners and I came across a live nest. We estimated (from an all to close distance) that the nest was close to 4 feet in height and little over 2 feet in width.  We left the area..........quickly and quietly. :o

We had the day before gone through a nest unknowingly, my friend John got hit 4 times by those bald face hornets before he could regain enough composure to advise me to head for cover. We managed to get into the truck and had to drive 5 miles before we finally lost their assault upon us. Numerous previous stops found them plowing into the truck's back window.

Their aggression in August is only matched by their cousins - yellow jackets.  
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EZ

In my child hood years I heard people saying if you shoot at a nest they will follow the rays back to where they came from. One year we had a nest behind the house about a 100 yards or so. My parents were'nt home one day so I got my 22 out and shot the nest. Within seconds the hornets were after me. I ran in the house and they stayed out there for hours. If you walk up to a window they would hit it so hard you thought they were going to break it. The rest of the summer we were getting strung. My dad wondered way they were doing this, I never told him, ever. That winter I was glad it was cold and snowy. The next summer every thing was back to normal.
EZ

AtLast

Just promise to have the cameraperson on stand by to take pics as youre frantically fleeing your house!!!!! :D

Tobacco Plug

After over a year I finally got around to finishing up the roll of film in my camera so here is the photo of the hornet nest I got last fall.  For reference, it is sitting on the tailgate of my pickup.  


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Tom_in_Mo.

I bet EZ moved faster than a bullet.   I have been bush hogging this fall and found about 5 hornets close to the ground, in matter of fact I am watch one right now to collect wanting to hang it here in my office.
I was wondering if they are close to the ground in most areas or was it just around here.

Tobacco Plug

Tom in Mo.
This one was about 20 feet up a tree.  However, this summer, I found one about the size of a grapefruit under the eave of my wood furnace shed.  Never saw any hornets in it, so I wonder if they started construction and decided that the location wasn't to their suiting. ;)
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