Wasps have an extremely good sense of smell and taste. Even the slightest trace of food on our skin can attract wasps. There is some misconception that wasps can sense that you are afraid of them and because of that will be more aggressive and will sting you after all.
There is no scientific evidence that wasps can sense fear, even if they have great senses, such as smell, taste, and sight. However, wasps do recognize fearful behavior (like abrupt movements) which could lead to a provoked defensive sting.
It has been shown that most animals even developed a fear of wasps that sting and try to avoid them at all costs. The animals know that if you stumble upon a nest of wasps, you will quickly get stung thousands of times.
The wasps recognize that the threat is coming, so they fly out of their nest and release a chemical that signals other wasps nearby that they need to go into defense.
What is fear and how is it expressed?
Fear is one of the basic human emotions that is experienced by everyone. It is in our nervous system and works like an instinct. Fear appears with the threat of harm, either physical, emotional, or psychological, real or imagined.
Traditionally fear is considered to be a “negative” emotion. But fear actually helps to keep us safe and prepares us for dealing with potential danger. It helps protect us. This is one of the survival instincts that we’re born with and it’s necessary to get this feeling as we see the danger.
Fear can be mild, medium, and intense and lasts for different periods of time. Scientists measure fear using eye-blinking rate, facial temperature, a test to detect electrical activity in the human brain.
There are also different expressions of fear:
- facial expression
(This expression can often be mistaken for a surprise) - vocal expression
(Higher pitch, strained tone, scream) - sensations
(These include feeling cold, shortness of breath, trembling, sweating, tightening of the muscles) - posture of fear
(You may be freezing in one place or run away from the source of fear)
With these signs of fear in mind the question arises if wasps are able to detect those.
Senses of a wasp
Wasps have good senses of smell and taste. They can also easily notice any changes in temperatures, humidity. These senses help them survive and play a key role during hibernation.
They also have a smell ‘memory’, meaning they can recognize how their food should smell.
Wasps are highly evoked, as they have a natural sensitivity to external factors. Wasps can identify chemical signals related to food, danger, weather, etc.
Parasitic wasps can guess how many eggs should be laid in order for them to survive in a host body. They can also sense if other wasps already left their eggs in the host with the help of recognizing chemical signals.
Social wasps can recognize colony mates by their special odor. The wasp, which doesn’t belong to the colony will be treated differently. These wasps also can produce alarm chemicals to fight the threat together.
The most powerful sense that wasps have is their ability to understand chemical signals for alarm, hunger, aggression accurately. But recognizing a colony mate isn’t the same as detecting the fear of a human.
Do wasps sense fear and how?
Wasps can’t sense fear, however, they have good taste, smell, and sight, which they use together to detect the movements of their targets. There is not enough research to state that wasps can sense fear.
You can get stung not because of your fear, but your fearful behavior. Your sudden movements make a wasp think that you are a threat, that’s why it will use its defense mechanism – a sting.
Wasps recognize fearful behavior.
There are only two different situations in which wasps sting. The first is when a wasp is searching for food, usually, it’s far away from its nest. Here the stinger is a tool for self-defense. You will get stung by a wasp in these circumstances: if you try to kill the wasp by aggressively moving your hands or if it lands on your clothing and you’ll try to brush it off.
The second situation is quite rare and much more serious. If you are within three meters of the wasp nest and you’re stung, as mentioned above, other wasps will also start to attack you. And they can chase their threat for long distances, which doesn’t sound good.
Also, it is good to know that wasps learn to recognize the landscape near their nest, but still, defend the colony only within several meters. If you’re wearing white, yellow, or any other pale color, there is a lower chance that a wasp will sting you.
And if your moves instead of rapid and abrupt are slow and smooth, then there is a chance for you to get away from the wasp nest without getting stung.
What to do if you are fearful in the vicinity of wasps?
If you see that a wasp landed on you, try to avoid sudden rapid movements. Don’t try to flap at it or brush it off. this won’t help you to get rid of it, you will only get stung. You need to stay calm and wait till it flies away on its own.
Try to stay calm!
If a wasp gets trapped in your clothing, it will be more difficult to deal with, as your movements can lead to getting stung. But again, the most important thing in this situation, and actually the hardest thing, is to stay calm and wait till the wasp finds the way out on its own.
The most effective way to avoid stings is to not act aggressively around a wasp. If you don’t have an allergy, then there is nothing to be scared about. When you see a wasp, just don’t move and wait till it flies away.
The chance of you getting stung in this situation is very low. Also, a good way to fight your fear of wasps is facing it directly. Try spending more time around a wasp, but make sure you’re not near the wasp nest. It will help you to reduce your fear.
Also, it is good to know that wasps don’t like herbs, such as thyme, eucalyptus, citronella, and spearmint. You can use fragrances with these smells, so you can avoid a wasp landing on you.
