# What digs out and eats yellow jacket nests?



## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

What kind of critter can ignore the stings of yellow jackets?!?!? Something dug out a decent-sized ground nest and ate a bunch of the contents...and then pooped right beside it. I'm just astounded that any critter could endure the wrath of the yellow jackets. Of course, this happened at night, so maybe they yellow jackets didn't sting? I'd love to hear what you folks think it could have been.

By the way, the afore-mentioned poop was about the size of cat poop, and was very dark and shiny...a bit smaller than raccoon, I'd say.


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

Bears eat yellowjackets. But so do skunks and raccoons.


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## TNHermit (Jul 14, 2005)

I have two that are hanging 15 ft up on the side of the dryer vent and they have both been ate out on the side away from the house. Don't think bear or **** could get there. gotta be some kind of flying thing. Dragon or such


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## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

TNHermit said:


> I have two that are hanging 15 ft up on the side of the dryer vent and they have both been ate out on the side away from the house. Don't think bear or **** could get there. gotta be some kind of flying thing. Dragon or such


I was gonna say woodpecker until I read that it was eaten on the side away from the house. Maybe a bat or owl?


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## Cabin Fever (May 10, 2002)

I'm thinking badger. Badgers don't care. Badgers eat poisonous snakes and stinging bees.


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## TheMartianChick (May 26, 2009)

A skunk helped us out by digging one out of the ground in our front yard. Hubby is allergic, so I was extremely grateful to it!


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## NickieL (Jun 15, 2007)

see...and y'all want to shoot everything that walks past ya homesteads....they are oft times helpful and have a purpose...


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## copperkid3 (Mar 18, 2005)

mammabooh said:


> What kind of critter can ignore the stings of yellow jackets?!?!? Something dug out a decent-sized ground nest and ate a bunch of the contents...and then pooped right beside it. I'm just astounded that any critter could endure the wrath of the yellow jackets. Of course, this happened at night, so maybe they yellow jackets didn't sting? I'd love to hear what you folks think it could have been.
> 
> By the way, the afore-mentioned poop was about the size of cat poop, and was very dark and shiny...a bit smaller than *raccoon, I'd say*.


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

In this area it's usually skunks or maybe ****. They wait until fall when the cold nighttime temperatures slow the yellow jackets down and the comb is full of food.


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

Cabin Fever said:


> I'm thinking badger. Badgers don't care. Badgers eat poisonous snakes and stinging bees.


You're right...badgers don't care. Badgers don't give a spit.


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## Pops2 (Jan 27, 2003)

NickieL said:


> see...and y'all want to shoot everything that walks past ya homesteads....they are oft times helpful and have a purpose...


no, the general concensus here is only to kill it IF it is a direct threat to the animals the homesteader is responsible for. you might want to read post a little more carefully.


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## Michael W. Smith (Jun 2, 2002)

I would have to say a skunk too.

It has been cooler at night, but I don't think enough to slow down the yellow jackets any. I'm sure they can't sting through the fur coat, but I would think the eyes, nose, and mouth would be targets, so I don't know how they handle that.

All I know is that yellow jackets sure are nasty. They don't usually come out to inspect what is going on - they are on full attack mode!


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## OkieDavid (Jan 15, 2007)

Bigfoot.... Their coat is too thick for the stingers ;0


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## jen74145 (Oct 31, 2006)

I also thought badger.


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## TnTnTn (Dec 23, 2004)

Around here it is skunks that dig out and eat the yellow jacket larva/brood. I am thankful for it as I am allergic to stings especially yj stings. When I am squirrel hunting if I find a yj nest I will put the squirrel entrails at the entrance and invariably a skunk will find and dig out the nest. We have had fewer nests on our place this year-I have killed 6 nests and had some yj sweet traps out for awhile-not seeing hardly any now. Which is good imo. I imagine bears and badgers would do the same. TTT


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## TNHermit (Jul 14, 2005)

Where do all these skunks, ***** and badgers get the ability to climb a stainless steel pipe


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

The holes I see are small (2-3"), circular and go straight down to the nest with the grass matted all around the hole. That indicates an animal reaching into the hole.

A badger would dig a much larger hole.

Our nights are down into the 50's. The grasshoppers are really slow in the morning so the yjs probably are too. Fox and coyotes eat a lot of the hoppers on fall mornings before they warm up.


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## Energy Rebel (Jan 22, 2011)

mammabooh said:


> What kind of critter can ignore the stings of yellow jackets?!?!? Something dug out a decent-sized ground nest and ate a bunch of the contents...and then pooped right beside it. I'm just astounded that any critter could endure the wrath of the yellow jackets. Of course, this happened at night, so maybe they yellow jackets didn't sting? I'd love to hear what you folks think it could have been.
> 
> By the way, the afore-mentioned poop was about the size of cat poop, and was very dark and shiny...a bit smaller than raccoon, I'd say.



Skunks.
Just watched a documentary on them last week.
Apparently the stings don't bother them.


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## bee (May 12, 2002)

Fox will dig them out too..old timers saying..."Grinning like a FOX eating yellowjackets".

For me tho it usually is a skunk..some scent is often in the area. Being as the only "bee" I'm allergic to is YJs, I am mostly live and let live with skunks.

If you have skunks working your area you should see a "V" shaped small dig where they got a worm or grub.


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## sweetbabyjane (Oct 21, 2002)

Around here armadillos will dig yellow jackets out of the ground. Not sure about the ones 15' up the wall...

SBJ


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## Harry Chickpea (Dec 19, 2008)

Since no one has yet brought it up, cupachabra.


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## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

Cool! They are rebuilding quite quickly. There was nothing but dirt in the bottom of the hole yesterday.


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## Country Lady (Oct 2, 2003)

sweetbabyjane said:


> Around here armadillos will dig yellow jackets out of the ground. Not sure about the ones 15' up the wall...
> 
> SBJ


You beat me to it. Armadillos dig in yellow jacket nests in the ground around here.


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## Freya (Dec 3, 2005)

"Honey Badgers" is going to play in my head allll day long now... thanks! ound:


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## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

We don't have armadillos or bears here. I was going to say that we don't have badgers either, but I looked it up and there is some information stating that there are badgers in Ohio. I've lived here my entire life and have never seen one and have never heard of anyone else saying that they've seen one, but I suppose that doesn't mean that there aren't any around.

A badger would be much more exciting than a dumb raccoon or skunk, though.

By the way, the hole is about 7 or 8 inches across.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

In your area I would say it would have to be a skunk. 

TNHermit, yours is probably a sapsucker, big woodpecker-like bird. They are active early early in the morning.


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## TNHermit (Jul 14, 2005)

Danaus29 said:


> In your area I would say it would have to be a skunk.
> 
> TNHermit, yours is probably a sapsucker, big woodpecker-like bird. They are active early early in the morning.


you seem to be right. Looked them up and we have the red breasted ones. Always think of yellow belly  they must be the quiet type casue its not that far from the bedroom and never hear them 
On a far out note. I was once told people bought big ole yellow jacket nest. Any truth in that?


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## Pops2 (Jan 27, 2003)

mammabooh said:


> We don't have armadillos or bears here. I was going to say that we don't have badgers either, but I looked it up and there is some information stating that there are badgers in Ohio. I've lived here my entire life and have never seen one and have never heard of anyone else saying that they've seen one, but I suppose that doesn't mean that there aren't any around.
> 
> A badger would be much more exciting than a dumb raccoon or skunk, though.
> 
> By the way, the hole is about 7 or 8 inches across.


you are mistaken. you do, in fact have bears in OH. depending on where you're at in the state they come in from PA, WV or KY.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

mammabooh said:


> We don't have armadillos or bears here.


Being from Wooster, nothing readily comes to mind. Certainly there are skunks and racoons, but I've never seen as many groundhogs as there are around Wooster. Got your share of rabbits & squirrels too. That accounts for over 90% of the 4-legged wildlife around there. I didn't know any of them ate bees.


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## Cindy in KY (May 10, 2002)

Ha Ha....I am selling Honey Badger Don't Care t-shirts. Honey Badger was the first thing I thought of, but don't imagine you have many badgers. I would never have guessed Skunks would want to eat them. Eeeeeww...


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

> On a far out note. I was once told people bought big ole yellow jacket nest. Any truth in that?


Lots of muzzleloader shooters want them to use the paper as patches.

Others want them just as ornaments


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## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

Pops2 said:


> you are mistaken. you do, in fact have bears in OH. depending on where you're at in the state they come in from PA, WV or KY.


I know that there are bears in southern Ohio, but we are in the north-central region.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

mammabooh said:


> I know that there are bears in southern Ohio, but we are in the north-central region.


Oh, you've got a few muskrats & opossums around there too, if you get off the beaten path. At least you see them as roadkill sometimes.


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## Pops2 (Jan 27, 2003)

adolescents have been known to wander several hundred miles looking for territory w/o big boars to threaten them.


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## Ozarks Tom (May 27, 2011)

Go to "paratusfamilia.com", and see the really inexpensive but effective way to get rid of yellowjackets. It won't get the hive, but apparently does a real job on the flying ones. By coincidence she just put that post up today!


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## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

Ozarks Tom said:


> Go to "paratusfamilia.com", and see the really inexpensive but effective way to get rid of yellowjackets. It won't get the hive, but apparently does a real job on the flying ones. By coincidence she just put that post up today!


I don't want to get rid of them...I think they're cool! They're way over near the fence row (property line), so they're not hurting anything.


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## tinknal (May 21, 2004)

mammabooh said:


> I don't want to get rid of them...I think they're cool! They're way over near the fence row (property line), so they're not hurting anything.


In the fall they go into self destruct mode and are crazy. Just wander near the nest and you will get swarmed.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Yes Ohio has bear in 3 of the 4 corners. They seem to avoid the Cincy area. But near Wooster if a bear had been seen it would be all over the news. The visitor we had here years ago was a young boar wandering through and on his third day in Ohio he was darted and removed. 

If I had seen him when he was scarfing up my cherries I would have a bear skin rug in my bedroom.  self defense ya know.


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## Solarmom (Jun 17, 2010)

LisaInN.Idaho said:


> You're right...badgers don't care. Badgers don't give a spit.


LOL I was gonna say that! 


Kris


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## CarolT (Mar 12, 2009)

Raccoons can climb a pole up against a wall, they'll either stick their paws between the pole and wall or if the pole is further out, they'll go up it like a chimney (back against one side paws against the other). They are amazingly good at climbing.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Skunks will dug nests out of the ground to eat the larvae. Woodpeckers will break into aerial nests to do the same. I've seen chickadees eating from bald-faced hornets nests but only after frost. Supposedly there are no native birds which will eat the adult yellow jacket.

Martin


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