It’s normal to see a few bees, yellow jackets, wasps, and hornets in your yard every once in a while. But if it seems like there are more stinging insects in your yard than usual, there could be a nest or a hive hiding somewhere. Watch out for these signs that a stinging insect hive or nest could be somewhere in your yard.
- Buzzing sounds—Can you hear consistent buzzing sounds coming somewhere from up above? If the buzzing doesn’t seem to go away, and even gets louder over time, you need an exterminator.
- Visible structures—Carefully look around your home’s exterior for visible signs of a wasp nest or beehive. Depending on the species, the nest may be made of thin, paper-like material or muddy deposits.
- Swarms of insects—Have you seen large numbers of stinging insects swarming in a particular area? Most stinging insects will leave their hive or nest in swarms several times a day and then follow the same path back to their home.
- Insects near water—If you have a pond, bird bath, or pool in your backyard, you might notice more stinging insects nearby if there’s a nest somewhere close. In many cases, stinging insects like to build nests near a water source.
- Dark spots on your walls—Are there dark spots on your home’s walls that weren’t there before? Many stinging insects like to build nests inside walls to provide an extra layer of protection to their colony.