Do Hornets Come Out at Night? What Hornets Do After Dark

For the most part, no. The stinging insects people call hornets around southern Utah, mostly yellowjackets, with bald-faced hornets turning up more at higher elevations, are daytime fliers. They hunt and forage while it's light, return to the nest around sunset, and stay there overnight.

That doesn't make a nest safe after dark. Here's what these insects are actually doing at night and what it means if one has set up on your property.

Do Hornets Sleep at Night?

Not in the way people do, but they do settle down. As light fades and the air cools, foragers come home and the colony's activity drops off. Insects have rest periods when they move less and react more slowly, and hornets and yellowjackets are no different.

Resting isn't the same as helpless, though. Some workers stay posted near the entrance through the night, and a colony that gets bumped, sprayed, or hit with a flashlight beam can still come boiling out to defend it.

Why a Nest Is Full at Night

During the day, a big portion of the colony is out hunting insects and collecting sweets. After sunset, almost everyone is back. A nest that seemed quiet at midday can hold hundreds of workers by late summer, and at night they're all inside at the same time.

That's one reason professionals often treat nests late in the day: treatment reaches the whole colony, not just the workers who happened to be home. It's also why taking down a nest yourself at night is a bad plan. You'd be disturbing it at the exact moment every defender is present.

The Exception You May Have Read About

You may see claims online that hornets fly at night and bang into porch lights. That describes the European hornet, a large species that does fly after dark. It's established in the eastern United States, not in Utah. If something is circling your porch light in St. George on a summer night, it's far more likely to be a moth, a beetle, or a cricket.

Where Hornets Nest Around St. George Homes

• Yellowjackets often nest underground in old rodent burrows or irrigation boxes, or inside wall voids, block walls, and sheds.
• Bald-faced hornets build gray, papery, football-shaped nests in trees and under eaves, and are more likely in cooler, higher spots like Pine Valley.
• Paper wasps, which people often call hornets, build open, umbrella-shaped combs under eaves, patio covers, and play sets, and are the most common stinging insect around St. George homes.

Nests start small in spring, which comes early here, and reach their peak in late summer. That's when colonies are most defensive and when most stings happen. If you ever see a large swarm or a bee colony rather than a wasp nest, keep your distance: Africanized honey bees have been found in Washington County, and those should be left to a professional.

Are Hornets Dangerous?

One sting is painful but not dangerous for most people. The real risks are a disturbed nest, where you can be stung many times in a few seconds, and stings to anyone with a venom allergy. Unlike honey bees, hornets, yellowjackets, and paper wasps can sting repeatedly.

A forager away from the nest will usually ignore you. Close to the nest, give it plenty of room and keep children and pets away.

Should You Remove a Hornet Nest at Night?

For most homeowners, no. Working at night puts you at the nest when it's fullest, with poor visibility and possibly a ladder in the dark. A tiny, early-spring paper wasp nest within easy reach is one thing, but anything larger than your fist, high off the ground, inside a wall, or underground is worth a call.

If you've found a hornet, yellowjacket, or wasp nest around your St. George area home, Butter Pest Control can locate it, treat the entire colony, and treat the eaves and other favorite spots to discourage a rebuild.