Hornets Control

Dolichovespula maculata · Regional threat level 80%

Call or Text (509) 471-5767

The Briefing

INSECT · Threat 80%

Hornets

Dolichovespula maculata

Here is the correction that matters: the insect Inland Northwest homeowners call a hornet is the bald-faced hornet, Dolichovespula maculata, which WSU entomologists note is technically an aerial yellowjacket, not a true hornet at all. True hornets in the genus Vespa, including the European hornet (Vespa crabro), are an eastern US insect and are not established in Washington. Bald-faced hornets are big, black-and-ivory wasps that build unmistakable gray paper footballs hanging from tree limbs, eaves, and shrubs, housing colonies of several hundred workers by late summer. They are beneficial predators of flies and caterpillars most of the season, but they defend the nest with coordinated, persistent stings, and late-summer colonies are the ones that send people to urgent care. The Asian giant hornet detections in Whatcom County were a targeted eradication campaign, not an established Spokane-area pest.

Field Signs

Signs of activity

A large gray papery football-shaped nest hanging from a tree limb, shrub, or eave
Heavy two-way traffic of big black-and-white wasps around a single point
Wasps stripping gray wood fiber from fences, decks, or firewood to build nest paper
Wasps dive-bombing or chasing people and pets that wander near the nest

Our Treatment

How we treat it

Suited technicians treat the nest in the evening when the foragers are home, then remove the nest and sweep the property for satellite starts before they reach football size.

Prevention

Keep them out

Walk the eaves, trees, and shrubs in spring to catch golf-ball-sized starter nests early
Keep trash cans sealed so late-summer workers are not drawn to the yard
Never swat at or spray a nest with a garden hose, it triggers the defense response
Call before the nest grows past softball size, small nests are far simpler jobs

Coverage