Yellow jackets are a familiar sight, often mistaken for bees due to their black and yellow striped bodies. These predatory wasps are known for their social colonies and active foraging. Understanding their defensive actions can clarify interactions with them.
Bites Versus Stings
Yellow jackets primarily defend themselves by stinging, not biting. They possess a stinger at the end of the female’s abdomen. This stinger delivers venom, causing pain, swelling, and itching upon penetration.
Yellow jackets have mandibles, or jaw-like mouthparts, used for chewing food, excavating nests, or gripping surfaces. These mandibles are not their primary defense against larger threats like humans. Their defense involves injecting venom through a stinger, unlike an animal’s bite.
Why Yellow Jackets Sting
Yellow jackets are not aggressive unless provoked or their nest is threatened. Their sting protects themselves or their colony. Common triggers include disturbing their nest, accidentally stepping on one, or swatting at them.
Yellow jackets are attracted to food sources, especially sugary items and proteins, leading to frequent encounters with humans outdoors. Unlike honeybees, which sting once and lose their barbed stinger, yellow jackets have smooth stingers and can sting multiple times. An injured yellow jacket can release an alarm pheromone, prompting other colony members to attack.
Dealing with Yellow Jackets
Minimizing encounters with yellow jackets involves several preventative measures. When outdoors, cover food and drinks, and dispose of trash properly to avoid attracting them. Avoiding sweet scents from perfumes or deodorants, and wearing light-colored clothing, can also help reduce their attraction. If a yellow jacket approaches, it is best to remain still and slowly move away, rather than swatting, as this can provoke a sting.
If a yellow jacket sting occurs, move away from the area to prevent additional stings. Clean the sting site thoroughly with soap and water. Applying a cold pack to the affected area can help reduce pain and swelling. Over-the-counter pain relievers or antihistamines can also help manage symptoms like pain and itching.
Seek immediate medical attention if symptoms of a severe allergic reaction develop, such as difficulty breathing, swelling of the face or throat, dizziness, hives spreading across the body, or vomiting. These symptoms can indicate anaphylaxis, a serious condition requiring emergency care. Individuals with known allergies to insect stings may carry an epinephrine auto-injector, such as an EpiPen, and should use it as prescribed if these symptoms appear.