Mud Daubers

Hello Gardeners, I’m Amanda McNulty with Clemson Extension and Making It Grow. Every year, my dear husband has to get mud dauber nests out of my free-standing sprinklers. Mud daubers construct a variety of nests of different shapes and sizes in which to rear their young. The most attractive and noteworthy are the organ pipe mud dauber nests. If you open a nest, you’ll find paralyzed spiders or insects inside. The female stings her prey, and places several victims in a nest, before laying an egg. The developing larva eats the immobile but still living and fresh food. These wasps are not social insects, one female is in charge of her own brood, although several females may use the same area. It is highly unlikely that one of these wasps would sting you and even if you sat on one, their toxin is rated as mild