Is your Lawn Holey?

Nope you have Digger Bees or Cicada Killers. These two winged pests dig burrows in the ground. Digger Bees appear in May or June while Cicada Killers appear from July to September. Digger Bees are often mistaken for Honey Bees or Yellow Jackets because of their yellow coloration. They prefer sandy or arid soil conditions. It is common to have large populations infest a specific area with their preferred soil type. When this happens they can be very destructive to lawns and intimidate humans. They usually are not aggressive unless provoked. People who are allergic to bee sting bites should take precautions. Digger Bees are beneficial to our environment because they are pollinators. Eradication should only be a last resort. The adult cicada killer is a very large, 1-1/8 to 1-5/8 inches long, wasp with a black body marked with yellow. The head and thorax are rusty red and the wings brownish. Legs are yellowish. They look like a large yellow Jacket. They are non-aggressive and rarely sting disturbed. The males aggressively defend nesting sites, but have no stinger. Adults feed on flower nectar and sap. Cicada killer females’ use their sting to paralyze their prey (cicadas) rather than to defend their nests. The captured Cicada is paralyzed by a sting and used for food to rear their young and then dragged to the burrow on the ground. Each female digs her own burrow six to ten inches deep and one-half inch wide. The dislodged soil forms a U-shaped mound at the entrance, causing unsightly mounds of earth on the turf. Nests are usually found in full sun light where vegetation is sparse and the soil is well drained. They have been known to nest in sandy soils to loose clay on bare or grass covered banks, berms, hills, as well as raised sidewalks, driveways and patio slabs. Some even nest in planters, window boxes, flowerbeds, under shrubs, ground cover, etc. Occasionally they establish in golf course sand traps.