Hornet hive: how it looks and structure, how to destroy and prevent the appearance

Like other wasps, hornets live in paper nests that they build themselves from pieces of wood. Consider exactly how hornet hives look, what their structure is, how to detect them. How many insects can fit in a nest, how hornets build it when they leave. Do I need to destroy the nest and how to do it. Prevention of the appearance of hornets on the site.

What a hornet's nest looks like

Wasps build a hive in the form of a cone or a ball, it consists of several tiers. Insects take material from old stumps and branches, which is why the structure is brown, not gray.Hornet nests are arranged in secluded places, under a canopy, in attics, in hollows, where they will be protected from rain and wind.

Average construction dimensions: 0.3-0.5 m wide and 0.5-0.7 m long. Insects, under favorable conditions, can build larger nests. Despite its size, the weight of an empty nest is small, only about 1 kg, because it is made of light, thin material.

Building

Inside the hive consists of compartments with honeycombs, the compartments are located around the axis, separated from each other by a thin partition. The tiers are located perpendicular to the axis of the nest and fastened together. On average, a hive consists of 3 or compartments and 7-10 tiers.

Detection methods

Hornets are useful insects, they try not to contact animals and humans unnecessarily. If the nest is in natural conditions, far from human habitation, it is not necessary to destroy it.

But hornets can make homes in the immediate vicinity of buildings. Here they can be dangerous, especially if the building is residential or frequently visited.

Hornets attack not only people, they can destroy bees, larvae, eat stored honey. In such cases, you will have to get rid of the unwanted neighborhood.

It would be nice to find a hive when the wasps have not yet fully built it and populated it. When construction is at an early stage, it is easy to remove the nest. If this is not done, young growth will soon appear in it, and it will be difficult to get rid of insects.

How many individuals live in one nest

The number of insects that occupy one hive can be different. How many individuals will be in the family depends on the weather, the volume of the food supply and how comfortable the nest is located. In each hive lives one family numbering, on average, 4-6 hundred insects.Under favorable conditions, good location and availability of food for all insects, the family can increase to 1-2 thousand wasps. The design in this case can be very large - over 1 m in diameter.

Building a nest

The hive is insect-friendly, light and strong. It well protects wasps from heat and cold, moisture and wind. The material for construction is the bark and the smallest pieces of wood, especially birch. Insects chew the pieces, moisten them with saliva and lay out layers of future housing from this mass.

The place for the hive is chosen by the uterus. She starts building.

First of all, the uterus lays out the first layer of cells, it lays eggs in them. After about a week, larvae appear from them, after 2 weeks they pupate. Another 2 weeks pass, and working individuals emerge from the pupae, which continue to build the nest. The number of insects that will live in the hive during the season depends on how efficiently they work.After the appearance of worker hornets, the female lays eggs, from which males and females will appear.

Insect flight

Females and males fly out of the nest immediately after leaving the pupae and start swarming. Working individuals continue to live in it until autumn, before the onset of cold weather. Then it gradually becomes empty, as the insects die from the cold. Only fertilized queens find shelter for wintering. They can produce a substance that, like antifreeze, keeps them from freezing. As a winter dwelling, females choose hollows, wooden buildings. Insects can also stay for the winter in their native nest.

Even despite the preparation, not all hornets survive the winter, but when the spring heat comes, the wasps fly out of their shelters and begin to look for a place to build a new hive. They do not return to the old one.

How to destroy a hornet's nest

Taking into account the life cycle and behavior of hornets, you need to destroy the hives late in the fall or winter, when they are empty. They do not have insects that can attack and sting. The hive can be easily removed by breaking off or cutting off at the base and burning.

If the nest needs to be removed in the summer, there are several ways:

• treat with insecticidal agents;
• burn;
• drown;
• splash with engine oil.

Do all this carefully so as not to cause insect aggression.

For your own protection, you need to wear tight clothing that covers all parts of the body, a hat with brim, a respirator if chemical means of control are used. Be sure to wear gloves. You can use a beekeeper suit if available.

From insecticides, you can use products that indicate that they act against hornets. Conventional drugs may not be effective. Insecticides give good results:

• Aerosol "Dichlorvos". It must be sprayed near the nest. It is usually used if the hive is located in rooms that a person rarely visits.
• Capsules "Delta Zone". They are dissolved in water and sprayed on the hive with a solution. Has a lasting effect.
• Solfisan emulsion. The construction of wasps is processed with it or added to the bait.
• Drug "Taran". The solution is sprayed on the nest.

It is best to process or remove the nest late in the evening or at night when the insects are not so active.

Prevention of occurrence

Although insects do not return to old nests, new ones are often built near them, because of the convenient location, protection from bad weather. To prevent the hornets from settling on the site again, you need to find and burn the old nest. From the surface on which it was kept, the remaining cellulose and wax must be removed. Then spray with an insecticide solution to discourage insects from setting up a new home.

For the production of paper dwellings, wasps use old wood that has begun to overheat, so all branches and stumps must be removed from the site. Repair wooden buildings, cover them with paint, varnish.

You can not leave plant debris, food leftovers, especially sweets, from where hornets can take food from. Food waste must be disposed of or kept in closed plastic bags, containers, bags.

It is known that hornets never build their nest next to another family's dwelling. Using this feature of wasp behavior, you can hang a fake nest on the site to scare away insects.

The sting of the hornets is painful and unpleasant, but by themselves they rarely attack people. They attack if they believe that the home is in danger. Therefore, it is not necessary to destroy the hornet's nest without a reason. Insects themselves will leave it as soon as the cold comes. In the meantime, you just need to stay away from him, do not approach and do not touch him.

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