They are the killjoys of our summers, real invaders that spoil an immeasurable number of lunches, barbecues and summer picnics: wasps.
They seem tireless. And if there are many tricks to get rid of them, sometimes the inevitable happens all the same, so aggressive are they, and you get bitten.
The wasp sting can be particularly painful, cause severe allergic reactions, which can even be fatal. “The number of deaths per year in France is estimated at around twenty due to the stings of Hymenoptera such as bees or wasps. These are mostly allergic accidents”, reports Gérard Duvallert, medical entomologist, on Medisite.
When they roam around us, we must therefore be extra careful with these yellow and black beasts. But some behaviors put you in danger without you even realizing it.
In our slideshow, discover these 8 things you absolutely must not do if you want to avoid being stung by a wasp.
This year, the invasion of these Hymenoptera is such that professionals speak of a “wasp summer”. The fault of the rather mild winter that France experienced. “while most usually die of cold and lack of food during hibernation, many wasps have been spared this year (including queens)”, specifies Marie France.
Wasps would also be particularly aggressive towards the end of summer, once the youngest specimens have left the nest to build their own colony. Slate explains that at this point, “the sisters no longer have to defend the colony or hunt to feed the younger ones. They just defend themselves and eat what they want – that’s why August and September are the months when the wasps sting the most”.
In any case, you have to make up your mind: wasps will not disappear overnight. The best thing is to learn to live with it. “When you’re around a table, you have to leave them alone and avoid killing them, explains to Tendance Ouest Louis Lair, a specialist based in Rouen. It’s not going to solve the problem of killing one or two. This what people have to do is keep quiet. The wasps will be able to live with them.”
To limit the inconvenience, the expert advises placing “melon plates” in a secluded corner to attract wasps. “Burning coffee also works very well” to scare them away, he says.