Why Do Yellow Jackets Swarm Around Food & Sugar?

Natural Food Sources

• Though they can be mistaken for bees due to their yellow appearance, yellow jackets are in fact wasps. Unlike bees, yellow jacket wasps do not produce and store honey as a food source. Instead, they scavenge for their food. Natural food sources include smaller insects and fruit. Yellow jackets also feed on decaying food sources, such as dead animals.

Attraction to Sugar

• Sugar and other human foods produce a strong scent. Since yellow jackets have a strong sense of smell for locating food in the wild, they are especially attracted to the sweet smell of human food. This is why yellow jackets tend to like soda, candy, and other sweet foods. However, they will locate virtually any human food source due to its smell. If a nest is nearby, you may encounter an entire swarm of yellow jackets when you leave food sources outside.

Dangers

• Like bees and other wasps, yellow jackets are equipped with a venomous stinger located on the insect's tail. When threatened, yellow jackets use their stingers to prick potential predators. Unlike bee stingers, yellow jacket stingers are not barbed, allowing them to dislodge their stingers and perform multiple attacks. Though this fact makes the yellow jacket sting generally less painful than a bee sting, some people may experience allergic reactions to a yellow jacket sting. If provoked, a swarm of yellow jackets can be deadly even if you are not allergic.

Prevention

• To prevent the attraction of yellow jackets, keep all of your outside food properly covered. Keep soda, juice, and other sweet liquids in sealable containers. This is especially important, as they have a tendency to climb inside of liquid containers to locate the smell inside. If a yellow jacket climbs into the container, you risk being stung in the throat when you take a drink. Use a bug-repellant candle or spray to help mask the smell of food and sugar. Also, wear bug repellant on your skin. If you experience a whole nest or swarm of yellow jackets, get inside and call a pest-control professional to remove the insects.