Swarm Trap FAIL!

[Simon]

It all started while I was making up some boxes and frames etc in my workshop a month or so ago.  I watched in amazement as several bumble bees (or possible the same bumble bee several times) flew through the door and started investigating areas under the bench and even the hole in the handle of my mitresaw presumably looking for somewhere to set up a workshop of their own.  Someone introduced Bombus Terrestris to Tasmania a few years ago and they have naturalised pretty well.  They like to live in mouse holes and possibly other places where the European (German) Wasps that we also have here, like to live.  So, I thought that I would provide them with somewhere better to live than in my shed.



A small box was duly constructed and some dry grass/wood shavings added and placed not too far outside my shed door.  I was hoping that the Bumble bees might find it more attractive than my workshop, but as you can see, some of the local skinks were only too happy to move right in.  That's OK by me as it'll keep them safe from next door's cat that likes to kill everything  :evil:

I checked the box yesterday to see how the skinks were going only to be met by a fat yellow and black wasp at the entrance  :shock:

Apparently the skinks had been evicted and this is what I found inside their former home.





An English Paper Wasp nest (Vespula vulgaris I think, but could be Vespula germanica for all I know) about the size of a golf ball.  I'm not sure if you would call it a successful swarm trap ...elaborate wasp trap maybe, but at least there are a "few" less yellow jackets around.  The workmanship on the nest is pretty amazing and it was a bit of a shame to remove it .. :devilbanana:

Simon

[Bees In Miami]

They are ALL amazing creatures!!  Too bad Wasps are so nasty!!!  You have to do what you have to do!   :whip:

[OldMech]

LOL  you might be on to something there.. needs a spring loaded paddle inside Once a month it mashes the wasps and resets.  :lol: