Pest Expert Overview: Black and Yellow Mud Daubers in Bryan & College Station
Black and Yellow Mud Daubers are extremely common throughout Texas. They build their nests where their larvae develop using mud. They are solitary wasps, meaning they don’t form a colony, but rather live individually. As with other solitary wasps and bees, Yellow and Black Mud Daubers are not aggressive. In fact, they won’t sting unless they are handled roughly. Even then, their sting is extremely mild. They produce about 1/10 of the amount of venom as paper wasps. Also, their venom does not contain any of the pain producing compounds found in that of paper wasps.
Black and Yellow Mud Daubers, Sceliphron caementarium, belong to the insect Order Hymenoptera and the Family Sphecidae. They are native to North America and can be found as far north as Canada. They’ve also been found in Central America, South America, Asia, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii, Fiji, Samoa, and Madeira.
Life Cycle
Mud daubers are spider hunters. They paralyze the spiders with their sting and stuff them into the mud chambers in the nest. Eggs are then laid on the spiders and the larvae feed on the spiders as they develop. The developing larvae overwinter inside the mud cells and emerge in the Spring to start the cycle over.
Why are they Pests?
Mud daubers are predators of spiders and not not considered pests. However, their mud nests can be unsightly and damage exterior finishes of homes. Their similarity to wasps that sting can be unsettling to people, especially if there are large numbers of mud daubers present.
Mud Dauber Prevention
- Eliminate Nests During the Winter: A portion of newly emerged mud daubers will return to the same areas to start their new nests. We have found that knocking down nests during the winter greatly reduces the number of new nests built the next year. This is because knocking down nests during the winter usually results in the death of the developing larvae.
- Keep garage doors closed when not in use.
Professional Mud Dauber Control
If you are dealing with an infestation of mud daubers, Venus Pest Company can help. Founded by Aggie Entomologist Dr. Scott Lingren, we provide expert, eco-friendly Integrated Pest Management solutions in Bryan and College Station. To get started, fill out the contact form, call/text 979.774.0486 or email [email protected]. Don’t let nuisance pests take over your home!
