Paper wasps under the eaves, why queens can show up in March and when a nest is a job

How to tell a paper wasp nest from a yellowjacket or mud dauber nest

A paper wasp builds an open, umbrella-shaped comb of paper cells that hangs from a single filament, with no envelope around it, most often under the eaves. Texas A&M's Apiary Inspection Service describes it as chewed wood fiber in one tier of hexagon-shaped cells.

• The wasp is slender. Paper wasps are 3/4 to 1 inch long and narrow-waisted, with smoky black wings. Polistes exclamans is brown with yellow markings, and Polistes carolina, the "red wasp," is reddish-brown all over.
• A yellowjacket nest is closed. It is completely enclosed in an envelope except for one entrance hole, E-239 says, and the wasp's waist is barely visible. Brown says the two get mixed up because certain paper wasps also have yellow stripes on reddish-brown bodies.
• A mud dauber nest is mud. UC IPM describes a dark, thread-waisted wasp that rarely stings, and since it does not defend its tubes, Texas A&M's E-239 wasp guide says you can scrape them off with a putty knife.

The clip below walks through all three with Austin's AgriLife entomologist.

Why queens can show up in March

A paper wasp colony normally lives one season. In fall, the mated daughters look for winter shelter, and the rest of the colony dies off over the winter. E-239 says the queens favor high spots such as peaked attics and chimneys, and Penn State notes that queens wintering in walls can get turned around and come indoors in spring.

They pick a nest site in spring, and in Austin the average last freeze is February 15 and the normal March high is 73.3 F. No source gives a measured start date here, so March is our reading of that weather.

The calendar lays the year over Austin's freeze-free months. For other pests, see the Austin pest calendar.

The paper wasp year in Central Texas

Each stage as the Texas sources put it, laid over Austin's average freeze-free months.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Austin's freeze-free stretchaverage last freeze February 15, first freeze December 1

average last freeze February 15, first freeze December 1

Queens start new nestsin spring, after wintering in cracks in buildings or under bark

in spring, after wintering in cracks in buildings or under bark

The colony growsthroughout spring and summer

throughout spring and summer

Colony at peak sizelate summer to early fall

late summer to early fall

Males and new queensraised in late summer and fall, and they mate in fall

raised in late summer and fall, and they mate in fall

Mated queens shelter for winterfrom fall, and on warm winter days some wander indoors

from fall, and on warm winter days some wander indoors

• Season named by the source
• Austin's average freeze-free stretch, 1991 to 2020

A spring comb and a late-summer comb: same nest, different job

The spring nest is small. A queen that starts a nest by herself works alone until her first daughters emerge, gathering wood fiber, laying eggs and hunting caterpillars for her brood, Mississippi State's Blake Layton writes. Early queens sometimes share a nest, E-239 says, but by midsummer there is usually one egg-layer.

Then it grows through summer, peaks in late summer to early fall and raises males and new queens. Even then, it is small next to a big yellowjacket nest.

Thousands of wasps is a yellowjacket number

A paper wasp nest against a Texas southern yellowjacket nest. Each pair is drawn to its own scale, with the yellowjacket at full width.

Wasps on one nestadults

Paper wasp: 20 to 30 adults

Southern yellowjacket: up to 20,000 workers

Layers of combtiers of cells

Paper wasp: 1 tier

Southern yellowjacket: up to 45 levels

Nest sizepaper wasp across, yellowjacket overall

Paper wasp: 6 to 8 in, if left to grow

Southern yellowjacket: a few in to 6 ft or larger

• Paper wasp
• Southern yellowjacket, in Texas

Next spring brings a new nest. The Apiary Inspection Service says the empty one is never reused, but E-239 adds that new nests often go up in the same general spot.

When a nest is a job

Where the nest is decides whether it is a job. Brown says wasp nests in an area that won't be disturbed typically are not going to be an issue, while one by the front door or on a kids' playset is a concern. UC IPM agrees that paper wasp nests shouldn't require treatment unless they are near people.

When one must go, go early: Layton says it is much better to take out a problem nest while it is small than once it is hat-sized with dozens of wasps.

A nest you can leave is worth leaving. Paper wasps feed their young caterpillars, flies and beetle larvae, and many gardeners count them as beneficial insects.

Fix it yourself or call

A founding queen on a small comb is often a broom job: UF/IFAS says to knock it down, and she will likely start elsewhere. Iowa State warns she may rebuild, and Brown suggests repeated early knockdowns, not once the nest is larger with several wasps.

• Go at dusk or dawn. The colony rests on the nest at night, so E-239 says treat in the late evening and Brown says early morning or just before dark.
• Stand back, not under it. Brown recommends a spray with a concentrated stream of 8 to 10 feet. Most aerosol wasp and hornet sprays make the insects drop instantly, Kentucky warns, so standing directly under the nest raises the risk of a sting.
• Wait, then clean. Leave the nest up until the wasps are dead, which can take up to 2 days. Then take it down and clean the spot of pheromones that might draw other wasps, Brown says.

For a busy nest by a door, a mailbox or a playset, E-239's general advice applies: wasp control is usually best left to professionals.

Our general pest plan covers wasps, so eaves, soffits and overhangs get treated on every visit, and a nest that turns up between visits comes down free. For homes not on a plan, taking down an active nest is $299, currently from $199. See wasp control and pricing.

Common questions