Subject: Anyone into Yellow jackets?

From: [email-masked] (demetrius)
Date: Sat, 30 Mar 1996 10:35:32 GMT

I am a beekeeper who keeps more than bees, I also keep Yellow jackets,
Hornets,wasps, and bumble bees. I guess you could say that I'm into
Yellow jackets, as I have been keeping them for years. Some seasons I have 
dozens of hives from several different species. I am very interested in 
large perennial (2yrs +) Yellow jacket colonies that have very high 
populations. I am willing to travel to see really big ones, and especially
ones that are a different species than the ones that I have in my area.
 In my area I have: Vespula vulgaris, Vespula pensylvanica,Vespula germanica
Dolichovespula arenaria,Dolichovespula maculata (bald faced 
hornet). If anyone has similar intrests e-mail, or post 
follow-up.       [email-masked]

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From: "Theodore V. Fischer" <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 02 Apr 1996 10:08:48 -0500

> follow-up.       [email-masked]
Goodness, why would anyone want to "keep" yellow jackets?  For most of 
the year, they and I stay out of each other's way.  However when it's 
extracting time I can easily keep honeybees out of my honey house, but 
those damn yellow jackets frustrate my every attempt at an insect free 
room.  All I can do is put up an electric bug light in the honey house 
and zap yellow jackets by the pound.  I guess I can say that I also 
have an interest in yellow jackets, but my objectives are differest!

Not to be too negative, however, I enjoy having the nests of the bald 
faced hornets around.  I used to watch them in the horse stable 
sitting in wait for stable flies, making a dash for one, then 
returning to their perch to munch away.  These hornets, however, 
occasionally make their way into the beehives to steal something or 
other.  Once in awhile I find one in the hive that the bees have 
successfully killed and covered with a thin coating of propolis.

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From: [email-masked] (Rick Haver)
Date: Tue, 02 Apr 1996 16:29:17 -0500

> follow-up.       [email-masked]                

There's a guy where I work that advertises for active hornet nests. He's a
scultor of sorts and he attaches strange things to the nests in the spring
and early summer in the hope that the hormets will incorporate them into
the nest structure. Last year he attached feathers and some fish skeleton.
I've suggested a retro-techno-chic motif of incorporating machinery parts
and nuts and bolts. It'd look great with the steel gray of the nests. 

He loaded up on proctective gear last year and still wears welding
leathers. Says he's felt them ram into he this back like the had a half a
mile head start but hasn't gotten stung.

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From: [email-masked] (demetrius)
Date: Sat, 6 Apr 1996 10:05:05 GMT

Theodore V. Fischer ([email-masked]) wrote:
: demetrius wrote:
: > 
: >     I am a beekeeper who keeps more than bees, I also keep Yellow jackets,
: > 
: Goodness, why would anyone want to "keep" yellow jackets?  For most of 
: the year, they and I stay out of each other's way.  However when it's 
: extracting time I can easily keep honeybees out of my honey house, but 
: those damn yellow jackets frustrate my every attempt at an insect free 

: Not to be too negative, however, I enjoy having the nests of the bald 
: faced hornets around.  I used to watch them in the horse stable 
: sitting in wait for stable flies, making a dash for one, then 
: returning to their perch to munch away.  
                                                                  
    Actually I keep yellow jackets because I can. I do informal experiments
and observations. Yellow jackets are very misunderstood, most people see 
them as nothing more than pests but if you look at them in a different 
light they might start to appear as trouble shooters in a bio management 
system. Take for example Mr.Fischer's above response, if they can get in 
the honey house so can other things (roaches,flies,ect..)like in 
slaughter houses they might complain:"those ____ yellow jackets!" but if
they're getting in it might be an indication that large open areas should 
be screened in to protect food processing areas and equipment from: flies,
roaches and diseases they may carry. a lot of beekeepers complain that they
kill bees and in some cases they do, but more often if you watch closely
they are scavenging the dead bees (and dying, or kicked out drones) from the
front of the hive. this is actually doing the bees a favor by removing a 
food source that would help to attract other predators. If you watch trees
when they are heavily infested (with yellow jackets) you'll see that they 
are feeding on things that do more damage than good:caterpillars,mothes, 
small beetles and larve,ect.. they also pollinate (though not as well as 
bees) I keep them right next to my bees with no problems, I keep them 
because I like them.   thanks for the responses!
               ---beeman (San Mateo Co.CA)