Wood-eating wasps are a common nuisance for homeowners with wooden structures and furniture. While wasps don’t actually consume wood for nutrition certain species use wood pulp to build their paper nests. Understanding which wasps chew wood and why can help you protect your property.
What Wasps Chew Wood?
There are two main types of wasps known for chewing wood – paper wasps and yellowjackets. Within these groups some of the most common wood-eating species include
- Dark Paper Wasp (Polistes fuscatus)
- Red Paper Wasp (Polistes rubiginosus)
- Metric Paper Wasp (Polistes metricus)
- European Paper Wasp (Polistes dominula)
- Common Aerial Yellowjacket (Dolichovespula arenaria)
- Eastern Yellowjacket (Vespula maculifrons)
- Western Yellowjacket (Vespula pensylvanica)
- Southern Yellowjacket (Vespula squamosa)
- German Yellowjacket (Vespula germanica)
- Bald-Faced Hornet (Dolichovespula maculata)
These wasps use their mandibles to scrape and chew bits of weathered wood from fences, decks, lumber, and trees. They mix the wood pulp with saliva to create a paper-like material used to build nests.
Why Do Wasps Chew Wood?
Wasps don’t eat wood for nourishment. Instead, wood chewing serves the specific purpose of gathering nesting material.
Adult wasps feed on nectar, fruit sugars, and other sweet substances. Their larvae, however, require protein from insects or spiders.
Female wasps build nests to house their eggs and provide food for the larvae when they hatch. Nests are constructed from chewed wood pulp, vegetation, and mud. The nest’s size depends on the wasp species, ranging from a few cells to complex structures with hundreds of hexagonal combs.
So while the sight of wasps gnawing away at your deck is alarming, they aren’t actually consuming the wood. They are simply gathering the cellulose fibers needed to build protective nesting sites for their young.
Preventing Wood-Chewing Wasps
If you want to deter wasps from damaging your wooden property, here are some effective methods:
- Seal cracks, holes, and crevices that provide access.
- Paint/stain/seal outdoor wood structures. Smooth surfaces are less inviting.
- Use chemical repellents formulated for wasps.
- Employ natural repellents like citrus oils, peppermint oil, and cloves.
- Install screens or covers around susceptible wood structures.
- Keep areas clean and free of food spills or trash that attract wasps.
- Prune trees/branches that touch or overhang wooden buildings.
- Knock down existing nests and remove debris.
- Cultivate plants that repel wasps like mints, basil, cucumber, and catnip.
Regular property inspection is also key. The sooner you locate and remove active nests, the less likely wasps will return and cause recurrent damage. Avoid disturbing large, established nests yourself and contact a pest control professional when necessary.
The Bottom Line
Wasps that chew wood are simply gathering materials to build nests – not consuming it for nutrition. While their wood-scraping behavior is more nuisance than threat, it can lead to structural deterioration over time. Implement preventive measures to make your property less hospitable to wood-boring wasps. Stay vigilant for signs of activity and promptly remove nests to protect your outdoor wood structures.
Why do wasps attack my teak garden furniture?
In early summer Queen wasps chew off tiny bits of wood, fly away with it and use it to make a nest about the size of a golf ball. She will settle down in it and lay her eggs. Once these worker wasps have hatched, they go off chewing wood to extend the nest until it becomes quite large.
Its only in late summer when the queen dies and the colony starts to collapse, the wasps start eating your picnic! This is because at that point they are no longer getting a daily fix of nectar.
Item added to your cart
At this time of the year we receive a number of enquiries concerning teak garden furniture that is being attacked by wasps.
This is quite a normal phenomenon if you have wasps in the vicinity. They attack all wood, but it shows up more on weathered teak as they take the thin top silvery layer leaving lines on the teak furniture about 2mm wide and about 25mm long revealing the fresh teak beneath – we just notice the problem more on our beloved teak garden furniture.
Wasp eating wooden gazebo
FAQ
What wasps eat wood?
-
They chew wood pulp to create the paper-like material for their nests.
-
They also chew wood fibers to build their nests, often using wood fencing or other wood sources.
-
These wasps, also known as horntails, are wood-boring insects that lay their eggs in trees, and the larvae feed on the wood.
-
Not Structural Damage:While wasps might chew on wood, they typically target trees or existing holes in structures, not to damage the wood itself, but rather to build their nests.
-
will nest in holes in wood, including nail holes, drill holes, or emergence holes made by wood boring beetles.
How to get wasps to stop eating wood?
As a solution, there are many natural repellents that you can make. White vinegar and water are great options. You can also try two drops of geranium or eucalyptus oil. Keep reading this blog to learn more ideas to keep wasps away from your wood deck.
Are wood wasps bad?
This can lead to adult wasps emerging in recently completed buildings or structures. Although these insects are extremely annoying, they aren’t harmful to humans or structures.
Will wood wasps sting?
Wood wasps are not as fearsome as they look. That long spike at the end of this female’s abdomen is her ovipositor. She can drill into a pine tree with it, but she cannot sting.