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| Last updated at 6:04 PM on 07/10/08 |
German wasps invade Grenfell and area this summer 
GRENFELL
KRISTINE MACDOUGALL
Sask News Now
There was an invasion of sorts in southeastern Saskatchewan this summer. And it wasn’t the Russians.
In fact, it wasn’t even people - but wasps. More precisely, the German wasp.
Recent reports have stated that the German wasp was a not-so-welcome visitor to many communities in the province, including Grenfell, this past summer.
Statistics show that there has been an increase over the last 10-15 years in the number of German wasps in western Canada. And while wasps are common in both rural and urban areas across the country, the German wasp is considered to be a larger, meaner version of the common wasp. It is the most aggressive species found in Canada today and is known to bite without provocation.
It’s sting or bite is said to be more painful because of it’s larger size and the fact that it can inject more venom into the skin. In many cases, a large red welt results after being bitten by a German wasp with pain lasting for as long as a week.
This species of wasp is commonly referred to as the German yellow jacket and is often seen scavenging around city or town garbage.
Late summer/fall is a particularly bad time for wasps because it’s the time of year when their natural food sources are drying up and thus, they become more aggressive. Both common and German wasps also tend to be in bigger colonies at this time and are found in larger numbers.
A Manitoba family recently learned just how aggressive wasps can be at this time of year. In early September Lloyd Mason, 63, was cutting wood outside his house in Baldur, MB when he was swarmed and stung repeatedly by wasps, eventually killing him. Many believe the wasps were German yellow jackets.
The German wasp is not native to North America and was thought to be accidentally introduced to the eastern part of the continent in 1940.
Over the years, it gradually made its way westward, travelling through Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba until it finally reached Saskatchewan.
For those people who get close enough, or wish to get close enough to a German wasp, there are several distinguishing features from the common wasp. In addition to its bigger size, German wasps also have three distinctive dots on the front of their face, unlike the common wasp, who bears the shape of an anchor on its face. And as previously mentioned, German wasps display more aggressive behavior.
There are several known ways for common and German yellowjacket wasp control, including non-toxic bait traps as well as many types of insecticides on the market today.
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07/10/08
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