Wasps appear to be placid when you see them from afar, toing and froing from their nest, and if left alone pose no danger, which is why they don't always need to be treated.

However they become very aggressive when they feel threatened.

Within the nest, the wasps have different jobs. You can’t always see it, but there will be some working on the outside of the nest, others will be doing nest maintenance on the inside and looking after the larvae.

Sometimes you will see a wasp sitting at the entrance of a nest, almost like a lookout or sentry.

When a person or animal, stumbles across a nest, either on purpose or by accident, the lookouts are triggered to protect the nest and become aggressive very quickly.

Social wasps use phermones to communicate information, so they can coordinate their members in the numerous activities of the colony, which includes alarms and nest defence. They will come out in force to ensure they get you away from their home and they will attempt to sting you in the process.

Tools, training and treatment plans

Considering the dangers that they pose, I would always recommend you use a pest management professional to deal with a wasp nest.

Having treated hundreds of nests, I speak from first-hand experience when I say that the wasp behaviour can change in seconds and it can be an unsettling experience when they attack.