Local wasp information

Wasp control in California

Learn what to look for around your property, explore your city, and ask about an inspection or a quote.

Wasps in California: what to know

Around California

Conditions vary across the state. Choose your city below, then describe what’s happening around your home or business.

What to note

Where you see wasps, how long it has been going on, and anything you’ve already tried are the most useful details to mention.

A useful next step

Ask about an inspection, what treatment would involve, and whether follow-up visits are included. You don’t need to identify the problem yourself before getting in touch.

Local research

Wasps in California: what the public record shows

Before you compare quotes, it helps to know which wasps actually live in California, when they are busiest, and what the state figures look like. Everything below links to the agency or university page it came from.

between 1,500 and 15,000 individuals

Yellowjacket colony size (UC IPM)

A mature nest inside a wall void can hold thousands of workers.

UC Statewide IPM Program

15 to 200 individuals

Paper wasp colony size (UC IPM)

Paper wasp nests under eaves are small and usually a quick single-visit job.

UC Statewide IPM Program

Wasp species recorded in California

Western yellowjacket (Vespula pensylvanica) — UC IPM: 'the most commonly encountered species and is sometimes called the "meat bee"' in California and the Western states; ground and wall-void nester and aggressive scavenger…
German yellowjacket (Vespula germanica) — UC IPM: 'becoming more common in many urban areas of California, where it frequently nests in houses.' Named among Ohio's three main species (German, Eastern, Common yellowjacke…
Bald-faced hornet (Dolichovespula maculata) — Penn State: 'found in most of the 48 contiguous states and D.C., throughout Canada and in Alaska'; actually an aerial yellowjacket that builds the football-shaped gray paper nes…
European paper wasp (Polistes dominula) — Penn State: 'first reported in 1978 around Boston', now 'coast to coast ... although they are apparently less common in the Southeast and Great Plains'; nests in 'eaves of struc…

When wasps are busiest in California

Queens emerge in late winter to early spring, nests grow from spring to midsummer and peak in late summer; in coastal California south of San Francisco some yellowjacket colonies survive several years and become very large (UC IPM).

UC IPM: the western yellowjacket is the most commonly encountered species ('meat bee'); the German yellowjacket 'is becoming more common in many urban areas of California, where it frequently nests in houses.' Paper wasps (Polistes fuscatus aurifer, P. apachus, P. dominula) prefer orchards and vineyards.

Rules that apply in California

For context, nationally

788 — Deaths from hornet, wasp, and bee stings, 2011–2021 (US). CDC MMWR
72 deaths per year — Average annual sting deaths, 2011–2021 (US). CDC MMWR

Sources: Yellowjackets and Other Social Wasps (Pest Notes); CDC MMWR; Baldfaced Hornet; European Paper Wasp. Figures are quoted as the source prints them. How we check our sources

Explore California cities

Anaheim

Mediterranean · urban setting

Wasp control in California

Wasps in California: what to know

Around California

What to note

A useful next step

Wasps in California: what the public record shows

Wasp species recorded in California

When wasps are busiest in California

Rules that apply in California

For context, nationally

Explore California cities

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Ask about wasp control in California