Flying-insect guide

Is it a wasp or a bee near your property?

Do not approach a nest to improve the identification. Watch from a comfortable distance, keep people away from the flight path and choose help according to the risk.

Request pest-control help More practical guides

Wasps following a flight path near exterior roof eaves

Keep your distance

Stay outside the flight path

Watch from a position where insects are not passing around you. Look for repeated movement into a wall, roof edge, air brick, tree or ground opening. Keep children and pets away, and do not tap the structure, block the entrance or spray into it to see what emerges.

No close or elevated photograph is needed.
Leave an exposed cluster undisturbed.
Keep doors, windows and public paths beside the route clear.

Useful differences

Behaviour and setting may help more than colour

Bees are often seen visiting flowers or carrying pollen, while wasps may also gather around food and waste. Both can use cavities, and several species can look similar from a distance. Keep the identification tentative unless there is a clear view from a safe position.

Flower visits may be normal pollinator activity.
Repeated entry to one opening can suggest a nest.
An uncertain insect should not be treated on appearance alone.

Edinburgh tenement entrances and ground-floor business frontages — Edinburgh properties

Choosing help

Species, location and risk determine the best route

Some bee activity can be left alone or directed to a specialist conservation service. A wasp nest far from people is different from one beside a doorway, play area or customer entrance. Request pest-control help when the likely nest creates a practical sting risk or prevents normal use of the space.

Ask for wasp treatment when repeated activity affects an occupied route.
Use a suitable bee specialist where conservation is the better fit.
Do not disturb the entrance while deciding.

Health emergencies

Use urgent medical help for a severe sting reaction

Difficulty breathing, swelling of the mouth or throat, collapse or other signs of a severe allergic reaction require emergency medical attention. Pest control deals with the property issue after people are safe; it is not a substitute for healthcare.

Keep anyone with a known sting allergy away from activity.
Use emergency services for a severe reaction.
Request property help once the immediate risk is managed.

Pest-control technician inspecting the perimeter of an Edinburgh kitchen — Home inspection

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Practical answers

Questions before you request help

Should every bee nest be removed?

No. Species, location and risk matter, and a bee specialist may recommend leaving or relocating some activity.

Can I block the entrance at night?

Do not block or disturb an active entrance. This may move activity elsewhere or bring you too close to the nest.

What if someone has a known sting allergy?

Keep them away from the area and use appropriate medical or emergency help for any reaction.

Can a photograph confirm the species?

A clear image can help, but distance, angle and similar species may leave uncertainty. Never take a risky photograph.

Next step

Ready to ask for help?

Request help