Which Wasp Sting is the Worst?

Well,I've been stung by almost everything in Tennessee,so here's my list from 5 to 1.5- yellow jacket,takes several to be more than a annoying.4- honeybee, not terrible but getting there.3- bald faced hornet, officially getting into misery territory.2 red wasp.horrible swelling and loads of pain for me.1- Velvet ant,which is a wingless wasp.Hellfire would be worse because it never ends,but these children of demons are AWFUL..Never,ever,do I want to get stung by another,40 or more years and I still remember how bad it hurt Guess. a bid to cicada killers is in order,thought that was what nailed me while riding once,if I knew for sure it was it would move the list a bit.

a reply to: EdumakatedI don't think so. The yellow jackets I usually see are much bigger here where i live.

a reply to: ridgerunner

Velvet ant,which is a wingless wasp.

Dear Lord, please let me never cross one of these!!!!!!!!!!
If it is worse than a bald faced hornet!

JAGStorm.... awesome OP !!

Oh Man!
Dude!!!!

I’m thinking back on two occasions in the 60’s encountered huge nests in the woods.
I only got a few stings, Paul and Donny however.....
I’m laughing so hard thinking back on this I don’t know if I can write the stories up.
I’m crying here....

WOW, this video!!!

a reply to: Edumakated

You made my day!!!!

Here it’s a Black Wasp with with stripes on its tail end.

They are vicious and make huge paper nests that hang from trees.
My kids called them “white bum bees”.


a reply to: JAGStorm

originally posted by: PiratesCut
JAGStorm.... awesome OP !!

Oh Man!
Dude!!!!

I’m thinking back on two occasions in the 60’s encountered huge nests in the woods.
I only got a few stings, Paul and Donny however.....
I’m laughing so hard thinking back on this I don’t know if I can write the stories up.
I’m crying here....

WOW, this video!!!

a reply to: Edumakated

I’m laughing because I remember my gym coach said you only need to be able to outrun your friends if attacked! LOL

originally posted by: scraedtosleep
a reply to: JAGStorm

I was walking through the woods one day when I stepped on an underground hornets nest.
I was stung dozens of times. So many times that I passed out from it. I was homeless at the time.
After I woke up I shrugged it off and never went to a hospital.

Because i'm a redhead with very pale skin I still see some of the red dots where they got me.
Bees or at least the hornets that stung me do not sting randomly. They all stung me in the same spots.
Especially on my right side just below my armpit.

If I had been allergic to them I would for sure be dead. But I'm not. I didn't swell up or anything. I did have whelps and large bumps where they stung me though.

So my vote goes to underground hornets. I was in pain from that for weeks.

Yes the underground hornets are the absolute worst, and the worst worst worst place to get stung is on top of your hand. I actually have a scar from it. The pain from the just lingered and itched and was hot. I also got stung on the back of my leg and the initial sting was horrible but it healed and felt better a lot quicker.

I got one of those little devices that sucks the venom out and as silly as it seems it works. It leaves a hickey but it takes the venom out and reduces the pain dramatically.

originally posted by: ridgerunner
Well,I've been stung by almost everything in Tennessee,so here's my list from 5 to 1.5- yellow jacket,takes several to be more than a annoying.4- honeybee, not terrible but getting there.3- bald faced hornet, officially getting into misery territory.2 red wasp.horrible swelling and loads of pain for me.1- Velvet ant,which is a wingless wasp.Hellfire would be worse because it never ends,but these children of demons are AWFUL..Never,ever,do I want to get stung by another,40 or more years and I still remember how bad it hurt Guess. a bid to cicada killers is in order,thought that was what nailed me while riding once,if I knew for sure it was it would move the list a bit.

I didn't find honey bees to be all that painful. Noticeable but definitely not as bad as a yellow jacket. Yellow jackets hurt but the pain doesn't linger. Red wasp was immediate jolt and lingered longer for me. I got hit on ankle by one and literally felt like I broke my ankle.

Velet ants aren't called cow killers for nothing. Ircc they have longest stinger.

originally posted by: JAGStorm
a reply to: ridgerunner

Velvet ant,which is a wingless wasp.

Dear Lord, please let me never cross one of these!!!!!!!!!!
If it is worse than a bald faced hornet!

I'd take 3 hornet stings over one sting from a velvet ant.Thats how bad they are,at least the one that got me.

a reply to: ridgerunner

Ants are unbelievable.

When I lived in Florida we had a retention area behind our subdivision. Some dummy decided they were going to disturb it. What happened after was the stuff of nightmares.

We had a bathroom in the back of our house. Ants started marching in. I bought about 30 of those Terro ant baits. What happened next I will never be able to erase from my memory. The ants were coming in from a window and down a bath wall into the tub. I put all the baits in the tub. Thousands (it seemed like millions) of ants were marching in and out of that tub sipping from the terro bait. They were drinking out of it just like horses drink from a trough. It was oddly very organized. It was not just one kind of ant either, it was every type of ant, black ants, small ants, big ants, red ants, brown ants. It looks like a scene from Game of Thrones as they descended from the Ice. It was so bad I would not allow my children to even look because I was afraid it would scar them.

So the ants drank, and drank and drank for about two days……….
Then the unbelievable happened. The numbers started going down. Then, a few died in the tub. Then the live ones came and got the dead ones and dragged them out. It was CRAZY. In the end there were only one or two left in the tub.
After that never had another ant in the house. I did hear all the neighbors around me have similar issues.

I am so paranoid that I have this uncanny ability to spot wasps nests. I just know where to look for them. I am always looking for errant yellow jacket nests, hornet nests, paper wasp nest.

originally posted by: Edumakated
I am so paranoid that I have this uncanny ability to spot wasps nests. I just know where to look for them. I am always looking for errant yellow jacket nests, hornet nests, paper wasp nest.

That's me now and I think these dang wasps know that I am scared of them.

It's not the ones in the trees I'm worried about, it's the ground ones! We have a lot of them here too.

originally posted by: JAGStorm

originally posted by: Edumakated
I am so paranoid that I have this uncanny ability to spot wasps nests. I just know where to look for them. I am always looking for errant yellow jacket nests, hornet nests, paper wasp nest.

That's me now and I think these dang wasps know that I am scared of them.

It's not the ones in the trees I'm worried about, it's the ground ones! We have a lot of them here too.

Yeah, yellow jackets are only wasps that I am really afraid of. Hornets and paper wasps are fairly docile as long as you don't get too close to their nests. They don't usually fly all up in your face and annoy you like yellow jackets.

Yellow jackets tend to nest in the ground around here. Usually a small hole at the base of a tree or in the ground around some bushes. I just have this six sense where I can always spot them flying in and out.

Down south, you have to be careful with any kind of over hang or awning as that is where red wasps love to build their nests. However, even when they have their nests, unless you really go right up to it, they likely won't attack.

Yellow jackets are the devil's spawn. Around this time of year, they get really aggressive here. Just flying everywhere looking for food as their nest are about to die out.

a reply to: Edumakated

I remember reading years ago that wasps also get a bit aggressive at this time of year because they get drunk off of fermented fruit. I don't know if that's a fact but I wouldn't dismiss it.

a reply to: JAGStorm

Never been stung by a hornet, but yellowjackets SUCK. Feels like fire, throbbing fire.

Trick: put some WD40 on the sting. Kid you not, pretty much takes it away.

a reply to: Edumakated

Yellow jackets, like hornets will swarm you.

Found a hornet nest in a rotted tree crevice near the house one time, went out after dark to spray them.

Attempt 1: a half dozen followed me a few hundred feet back to the house and into the garage.

Attempt 2: Took my car up there and cracked the window. They attacked the car.

Attempt 3: Wrapped some red gel on a flashlight and blasted them with spray. Success.

a reply to: SirHardHarry

Trick: put some WD40 on the sting. Kid you not, pretty much takes it away.

I can see that working actually. I guess the oil works like drawing ointment(Zinc Oxide).

originally posted by: Wide-Eyes
a reply to: Edumakated

I remember reading years ago that wasps also get a bit aggressive at this time of year because they get drunk off of fermented fruit. I don't know if that's a fact but I wouldn't dismiss it.

They get aggressive because the hive is no longer making food and thus the workers are starving.

I googled it...

originally posted by: Edumakated

originally posted by: Wide-Eyes
a reply to: Edumakated

I remember reading years ago that wasps also get a bit aggressive at this time of year because they get drunk off of fermented fruit. I don't know if that's a fact but I wouldn't dismiss it.

They get aggressive because the hive is no longer making food and thus the workers are starving.

I googled it...

They get aggressive because a pheromone is sent to the workers when there is a disruption/threat/vibration (activity) around the hive.

I googled it.

originally posted by: SirHardHarry

originally posted by: Edumakated

originally posted by: Wide-Eyes
a reply to: Edumakated

I remember reading years ago that wasps also get a bit aggressive at this time of year because they get drunk off of fermented fruit. I don't know if that's a fact but I wouldn't dismiss it.

They get aggressive because the hive is no longer making food and thus the workers are starving.

I googled it...

They get aggressive because a pheromone is sent to the workers when there is a disruption/threat/vibration (activity) around the hive.

I googled it.

But you didn't read the thread... we aren't talking about threats to the nest. Yes, if you disturb a nest, they will get angry and attack.

However, what we are talking about is that in the fall, yellow jackets are more annoying and aggressive (i.e., will pester you at a picnic). Yellow jackets get more aggressive / annoying in the fall because they are starving.

Here is an article on the phenomenon.

Why Yellow Jackets Are More Aggressive in the Fall