Lincroft, NJ Expert Pest & Wildlife Control

Recently, I was sent to a home in Lincroft, NJ to deal with a wasp infestation. Upon arrival, I saw that I was dealing with baldfaced hornets. These aggressive, territorial social wasps are part of the yellow jacket family. Their coloration is readily identifiable: black with white markings on their face and abdomen. They are exceptionally strong wasps that can drill their stingers through thick clothing, and even worse, a single wasp can sting multiple times since they don’t lose their stingers. The wasps that we know as yellow jackets usually build their nests in underground burrows and other cavities. However, baldfaced hornets are aerial yellow jackets that build their distinctive spherical paper nests above-ground in plain sight,  

These wasps make their nests from chewed wood fibers that they mixed with their saliva to hold everything in place. Every baldfaced hornet nest is built from scratch each year, starting in early spring when the queen locates her nesting location. These nests are not reused, and the queen are the only members of the colony that survive the winter. This nest that I was called to remove here in Lincroft was a mature end-of-summer summer nest that easily had a few hundred workers. As you can see in the photos, a mature nest can grow quite large — upwards of two feet long and more than a foot in diameter!

A baldfaced hornet nest has a thick, multilayered outer shell with a single opening toward the bottom. This opening is used by the  wasps to enter and exit the nest.  These nests are often attached to tree branches or shrubs, but they are also built in places where the wasps pose a threat because of their close proximity to people. We are often called out when the nests are attached to or in close proximity to homes, patrons, or sheds. While we often find these nests built under roof eves, they can be built virtually anywhere —  even on the  the top of a window frame on the side wall of a garage! Because of its location, I was able to get a good view of the nest on both sides. 

Removing a hornets nest is risky business.  With stinging insects, a DIY project can easily turn into a trip to the emergency room. It’s far safer to hire a professional service to remove the nest. These insects deliver a sting you won’t soon forget, and from personal experience, these wasps can sting someone who is protected with a full body suit.  

To remove the nest, I first used an aerosol to knock down all hornet activity. Once the hornet activity around the nest has stopped, I then remove the nest, package it, and take it with me. There is always a chance of a few stunned, but still alive, hornets inside the nest. With a baldfaced hornet infestation and other nest-building stinging insects, I remove the nest off the property. With these large multi-layered nests, there is always a possibility that there are live wasps hiding inside — and when they emerge they will be quite upset that their nest has been disturbed!

Recently, I was sent to a home in Lincroft, NJ after the homeowner contacted Cowleys because of a large swarm of “wasps” outside her home. Upon arrival, I asked if anyone had yet been stung. She replied, fortunately no.

Once I started my inspection, I immediately understood why no one in the home had escaped the wrath of a swarm of aggressive wasps. These insects weren’t wasps at all! These were a type of fly known as hover flies! These are true flies, just like annoying houseflies, so they don’t sting. How do you tell the difference between a fly and a stinging insect? Count the wings! Flies have only one pair of wings, while bees and wasps have two. I have a saying about the difference: Two wings fun, four wings run! 

Many animals especially reptiles (like snakes), amphibians (like frogs), and insects (like yellow jackets) use warning coloration. They have bright colors to warn others to back off. Bight colors let other animals that I’m dangerous — I bite or sting and have a toxic venom that will put a world of hurt on you! Common bright warning colors are reds, oranges, and yellows. There are usually distinct marking with contrasting colors that make them easy to notice. People, like most other creatures, are programmed to fear anything with black and yellow coloration. Even little toddlers will run away in fear of bees and yellow jackets. Hover flies engage in animal mimicry. Mimicry is where an animal “mimics” the look of a more dangerous animal. Hover flies mimic stinging insects. Animals innately know that striped insects are bad news so they leave them alone. Mimicry is especially common with snakes. King and milk snakes with their bands of red, black, and yellow mimic the venomous coral snake, and the harmless gopher snake shakes its tail like the poisonous rattlesnake. 

It is understandable why this homeowner thought these flies were wasps. You really have to know what you are looking for to tell the difference. Most wasps have antennae shaped like bullhorns that being more on the sides of the head and protrude outwards. Hover fly antennae begin more directly in the front of the head and are much shorter and smaller. A hover fly abdomen is somewhat flat while a wasp has a much rounder abdomen and have a slender wasp waist that narrows between the thorax and abdomen. Also, wasps often have a pair of spots along the back of their abdomen and hover flies do not. 

Hover flies are named that for good reason. They are  top-notch “hoverers,” far better than bees or wasps. With an amazingly fast wing beat, they easily hover over flowers until ready to feed on the flower nectar or pollen, and look as though they are standing still in the air. Hover flies are beneficial garden insects. They are significant pollinators and their larvae does a great job consuming garden pests, especially garden-destroying aphids. Once I explained to these homeowners the type of “infestation” on their property, they were quite relieved. I suggested that there was no reason to get rid of these insects and the homeowners agreed. They were quite insistent that they wanted to let these beneficial pollinating insects continue “doing their thing.”  I was happy to give these homeowners’ some peace of mind. Not every job we go on winds up involving a nuisance pest.