Yellow jackets often buzz around gardens and backyards, especially in late summer and early fall. Knowing what they eat can help you manage their presence. Let’s dive into what yellow jackets eat, their food choices, and how they fit into the ecosystem.
The Basics of Yellow Jacket Diet
Yellow jackets are omnivores, so they eat both plants and animals. Their diet changes throughout their life and depends on what their colony needs. In the spring and early summer, yellow jackets focus on protein to help their larvae grow. They hunt insects, spiders, and other small creatures, chewing them into a pulp to feed their young.
As summer goes on and their nests get bigger, yellow jackets start to eat more carbohydrates. They look for sweet things like fruit, nectar, and tree sap to keep the adult wasps energized. This shift in diet often brings them closer to humans, as they get attracted to sugary foods and drinks at picnics and outdoor gatherings.
Yellow Jacket Food Preferences
Yellow jackets have specific food preferences based on what’s available and what their colony needs. Here are their main food choices:
Protein Sources:
Insects: Yellow Jackets hunt flies, caterpillars, and beetles, helping control pest populations.
Meat: They scavenge on dead animals or leftover meat from human activities.
Fish: Yellow jackets love exposed fish, especially during outdoor events.
Carbohydrate Sources:
Fruits: They are drawn to ripe fruits like apples, pears, and grapes.
Nectar: Yellow jackets feed on flower nectar, which provides essential sugars.
Sweets: Human foods like soda, ice cream, and candy attract yellow jackets quickly.
Nest and Feeding Behavior
Yellow jackets build their nests in many places, including underground burrows, tree hollows, and man-made structures like eaves and attics. Their diet links closely to their nesting behavior. Early in the nesting period, they need a lot of protein to feed the larvae. Adult yellow jackets leave the nest to find protein-rich foods and bring them back to feed the young.
As the colony grows, they need more carbohydrates. Worker yellow jackets search for sugary foods to keep their energy up and support the queen’s egg-laying. This foraging often leads them to human food sources, where they can become a nuisance.
Practical Tips to Manage Yellow Jackets
Managing yellow jackets around your home involves knowing what they eat and taking steps to reduce attractants. Here are some practical tips:
Cover food: Keep food and drinks covered during outdoor activities to avoid attracting yellow jackets.
Clean up: Quickly clean up spills and throw away garbage in sealed containers.
Use traps: Place yellow jacket traps to catch foraging workers before they become a problem.
Yellow Jacket Food Preferences Table
Below is a quick reference table showing what yellow jackets prefer to eat and what they generally avoid:
| Yellow Jackets Eat |
Yellow Jackets Do Not Eat |
| Insects (flies, caterpillars, beetles) |
Grass |
| Meat (leftover or carrion) |
Leaves |
| Fish (exposed during outdoor activities) |
Stems |
| Ripe fruits (apples, pears, grapes) |
Roots |
| Flower nectar |
Bark |
| Sweets (soda, ice cream, candy) |
Wood |
