Everyone reacts differently to alcohol. You know the different types of drunk people. You have your happy drunk, your sad drunk, and then there’s your angry drunk. These rules apparently also apply to non-humans, wasps in particular. Of course, most pests are likely to become even more of a pest when they’re drunk, so this isn’t exactly a huge revelation. Unfortunately for some U.K. beer lovers, drunk, angry wasps are starting to crash their parties in a big way. Wasps have apparently been drinking themselves silly on the leftover hard cider at beer gardens and then going on “stinging rampages” that are wreaking havoc on the lager-loving humans also present.
After a harsh winter in the U.K., insects have apparently been turning to the plentiful cider left lying around in beer gardens for their sustenance. They have built up huge nests filled with larvae that have now grown up at the same time the queen stops laying eggs, leaving the workforce of the colonies with nothing to do as well as nothing to eat. So, where have they been spending their time? Why, down at the local pub, of course. Unfortunately, the wasps don’t react very positively to the consumption of alcohol in these ciders and fruity beers. To put it bluntly, wasps are angry drunks.
The alcohol makes the wasps even more testy and aggressive than they already are, which leads to more people getting stung by them while they’re just trying to enjoy a pint after a hard day’s work. Of course, you get mean human drunks too, so these wasps aren’t acting too different from some of the other patrons of these pubs. What makes it worse is that with the start of spring, the queens will wake from hibernation and start laying eggs, meaning the number of wasps just keeps growing. And as the wasps get more numerous, their wild partying and debauchery continues, meaning more and more angry, drunk wasps for people to contend with. Also, much like humans, wasps are attracted to sweet foods, so the food people order to go with their pint of beer just makes things worse. The best way to avoid these stinging rampages is to make sure to throw away your trash quickly and properly.
Have you ever been at a local bar or restaurant that serves alcohol and noticed drunk insects trying to partake of your drink?
