It is well known that wasps like to make themselves comfortable in roller shutter boxes. But in the window frame? Various experiences show that the insects sometimes find shelter here as well. However, these are usually not the annoying and dangerous mass species.
A window frame is a good spot for a wasp nest
Some like it tight
Wasps generally raise their offspring in fairly close quarters. The colony-forming species also stack their larvae in sparingly stacked brood chambers in order to get a stable nest construct with efficient supply economy. Nevertheless, these nest constructions, which ultimately house around 7000 animals, need a little space overall - this is provided, for example, by niches in roof structures or the cavities in roller shutter boxes.
However, the much larger proportion of wasp species living in this country are not colonies, but solitary. These include, for example, some clay wasps, digger or pill wasps. In each case, a female raises her brood alone. It goes without saying that the offspring cannot be that extensive.
Let's hold on:
- Social wasp species build large nests that need space
- In window frames there is usually only room for small breeding grounds of solitary wasps
Don't panic about "window frame wasps"
So if you see a wasp flying in and out of your window frame, it's probably a solitary wasp. It may have found suitable shelter in condensation drains or abandoned beetle boreholes. A clear indication that the subtenant is a solitary wasp are brownish heaps of crumbs on the window sill. These are remnants of the loamy closure structures with which the female provides the brood cells.
Basically, solitary wasps in window frames are no cause for concern. Firstly, they are basically peaceful and, due to their solitary lifestyle, not nearly as dangerous as the colony wasp species. It is extremely unlikely that they will sting a person, and they are also useful pest killers.
They also do not cause any major damage to the window frame because they only use existing hollow passages. However, if the wasp in the window frame makes you uncomfortable and you want to prevent re-colonization in the following year, you should clean an orphaned nest well in autumn. Of course, a condensation drain must not be closed, but a beetle borehole can. Simply use some clay or plaster of paris.