• AnxiousDuck@feddit.it
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    2 days ago

    Fuck, I entered a bakery in Vienna once that was flooded with wasps everywhere. I asked about it and the person just went 🤷‍♀️. Still haunts me.

    • FreeWilliam@lemmy.ml
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      2 days ago

      Whenever I go to Germany it’s the same thing! What is it with european bakeries and wasps? Wait a second… the europeans must be undercover wasps and they let and don’t mind the wasps eating their food because they’re their kind! It all makes sence now!

      • tigeruppercut@lemmy.zip
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        2 days ago

        Do they just like, not have screens over there? I stayed in Germany once and the whole house had no screens on the windows, then I started noticing that I couldn’t see them anywhere I went.

  • Komodo Rodeo@lemmy.world
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    3 days ago

    Serious question, are the wasps as likely to get diarrhea eating that as I think they are, and will the hive reject them at the entrance if they’re doing the insect equivalent of shitting their pants the way hives do with drunks?

  • rmuk@feddit.uk
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    3 days ago

    Can’t say I’d be delighted about this, but they’ll very quickly leave when the food’s disturbed and wasps - like bees - don’t leave behind diseases or eggs. The same cannot be said for flies - if those were flies I wouldn’t touch anything in the shop.

    • Enkrod@feddit.org
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      2 days ago

      And wasps will kill any fly that dares come close. Only thing they like more than sugar is protein.

    • ZILtoid1991@lemmy.world
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      3 days ago

      My experience with wasps are different. They’ll fucking attack you it you’re anywhere near their food.

      • vxx@lemmy.world
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        3 days ago

        Africanised bees will be like that, but we don’t really have them in europe as far as I know.

        Wasps usually only get really stingy if you disturb their nest or come way too close to it.

        You’ll find wasps in almost any bakery in summer. Also in and around garbage cans.

        You grab the pastry and they will usually fly away and settle onto the next one a bit later.

        • dbtng@eviltoast.org
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          2 days ago

          There seems to be a vast gulf here. American wasps will fukin attack you for fun. So you kill them first.

          • vxx@lemmy.world
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            2 days ago

            Do they really attack on sight?

            Here it’s usually that they seek out the breath because of the monoxide and people start panicking because the ly fly into their face and seemingly wont go away. So they Start swinging their arms at the wasp and it feels in danger and attacks.

            Easiest solution is to hold breath and walk away if they bother you.

            • dbtng@eviltoast.org
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              2 days ago

              If you are too close to the nest, they will send out scouts, and then you can expect an attack. Kill them first.

              • vxx@lemmy.world
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                2 days ago

                That’s true and it’s kind of bad to have them where you’re walking daily. That’s when I would do something as well.

                I already said that in my first comment.

                Theyre an important part of the ecosystem though. Pest killer number one. If there’s constantly wasps settling near you, there’s a reason.

                • dbtng@eviltoast.org
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                  12 hours ago

                  The waps here hang paper nests all over the place. Like outside your kids room. Maybe even inside. We mostly encounter them in the context of their breeding activities.

          • vxx@lemmy.world
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            2 days ago

            I’m from germany, and it indeed is in summer, even in large cities. Wasps come in with the customers and wont leave.

              • vxx@lemmy.world
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                2 days ago

                Apparently that’s a myth according to every source I could find about wasps in the US.

                They seek out your breath, so people start panicking swinging wildly and running away, which in return might be considered a threat for the wasp.

                Hold your breath and walk away.

                Killed wasps on the other hand attract other wasps out for revenge, if the nest is somewhere nearby.

                • dbtng@eviltoast.org
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                  2 days ago

                  The nest is my primary target. Cover up, knock it down, destroy it, walk away for a bit, they all leave. Fuk wasps.

                  Hmm. When you consulted “every source I could find about wasps in the US” apparently you chose to disregard the direct feedback of people on the front line. Hmm.

  • Dharma Curious (he/him)@slrpnk.net
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    3 days ago

    What is it with European bakeries and bees? I’ve seen memes and stuff about it, and this one youtuber, a Vietnamese woman who’s German BF never shows his face, I can’t remember her name right now. She showed a bakery in Germany with bees everywhere. Why is this a thing?

    • go $fsck yourself@lemmy.world
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      3 days ago

      I’ll never understand why people call wasps “bees”. They are extremely different. It’s like calling deer “horses”. Why is this a thing?

      • dbtng@eviltoast.org
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        3 days ago

        Ya, that’s an odd odd thing. I know people that live around actual bees, watching the commercial hives swarm in the fields during pollination. They really know what bees are. And then when a wasp shows up, they are like “Fukin BEES!!!” and break out with a can of poison.

        • Swedneck@discuss.tchncs.de
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          18 hours ago

          this is true if you sensibly agree that “wasp” is a generic term and not hornets specifically, bees and ants are “wasps” but they are not hornets.

        • Sirence@feddit.org
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          2 days ago

          A bee is not a type of wasp. They are both Hymenoptera, one of the 4 types of insects, but that would be the same as saying a dog is a type of human because both are Eutheria.

    • I think those are actually wasps. It’s particularly common in countries like Germany and Luxembourg where native wasps are protected species. As for Poland and other parts of Europe, it’s hard to keep them out when you keep the doors propped open in lieu of central AC (and they’re attracted to the fresh sugar), and wasps and bees don’t transmit disease anyway, so people just get used to them

    • needanke@feddit.org
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      3 days ago

      Compared to (my impression of) north America I think there are some contributing factors:

      • Less sprawl: Bakeries are usually in a town/neighborhood (which has more nature compared to the US, therefore also more insects) and not surrounded by a huge parking lot where no wasps would live. There are also many neigbouhring properties with different owners/occupants. So their nest might nor be on your property or even somewhere where you’d be able to locate it.
      • (more) indipendent shops: I see waaaay less wasps in the baked good section in supermarkets here as well. Bakeries are usually not huge so it is just a short distance for the wasps to fly in a confinded space. Bakeries are also not usually airconditioned which would probably irritate wasps.
      • conservation laws: Wasps are considerd a protected species in Germany and catching, harming or killing them without a proper reason can carry a fine of up to 5-65k€ depending on the kind of wasp and the state. In general wasp nests can only be moved by professional and licenced exterminators (and they only do it when necessary, like the nest being near a kindergarten or in an occupied builduing).
    • Venus_Ziegenfalle@feddit.org
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      3 days ago

      Wouldn’t traps near the food be a bigger concern than wasps taking a bite? Idk I live in Germany so I might be desensitized. The way I see it wasp-free pastry is preferable but if they decide to help themselves then oh well. They don’t soak the food in spit and they don’t lay eggs on it, they just nibble.

      • ComfortableRaspberry@feddit.org
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        3 days ago

        When eating outside we sometimes set up an “Opferteller” with left overs and put out to the side so the wasps have their thing going on that plate and we can continue to eat. It’s fascinating to watch but at the same time I’m scared shitless since I had a very bad experience with nest defending wasps and my long hair as a child…

        • Venus_Ziegenfalle@feddit.org
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          3 days ago

          I do the same thing and then I just move slowly as not to squish or slap them accidentaly. Works much better than shooing them 😄 Wasps have a bad reputation but they’re useful and kinda cool honestly.

          • dbtng@eviltoast.org
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            3 days ago

            Where I live, it is considered a community service to kill wasps. Seriously. Gotta die.

              • dbtng@eviltoast.org
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                3 days ago

                Fascinating. Its not that I have some obsession with killing wasps, but its something I do immediately. When I see nests, I eliminate them. I will tell the property owner, “You’re welcome.”

      • dbtng@eviltoast.org
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        3 days ago

        You’re mad. Out of your mind. That’s not uncommon on the internet. There are many of us.