It wouldn’t be a summer in Germany without wasps. Anyone who sets up a picnic in the park, or even a barbecue on their balcony in the summer months here is bound to deal with at least a couple.

The wasps you will most often find in Germany are the “common wasp” and the “German wasp”. They aren’t really dangerous, except to people with wasp allergies.

These two species have a very similar appearance, and can be equally annoying due to their taste for sweet drinks, fruits and even meats. 

But while a couple hungry wasps can be quite obnoxious, you would be advised not to try and squash them.

In fact, should you succeed in killing a wasp, you could technically be forced to pay thousands of euros in fines, according to German law.

Can I really be fined for killing a wasp?

The short answer is: yes. 

Wildlife in Germany is generally protected by the Federal Nature Conservation Act (Bundesnaturschutzgesetz).

Wasps in particular are mentioned in the conservation act, and are protected from “capture, injury or death without reasonable cause”.

Recommended fines for killing wasps vary from state to state, but they start around €5,000 and can go as high as €50,000.

That said, this fine is rarely enforced. It generally exists as a deterrence measure, and there are a couple important exceptions.

A German lawyer who specialises in animal law, Andreas Ackenheil, told Euronews that people who are allergic to wasp stings could be allowed to kill a wasp if they were being threatened.

Additionally, problem wasp nests can be removed, but a permit is required. 

Therefore if you find a wasp nest on your home, you’re better off calling a pest control service, which would have the necessary permit to handle the removal.

Plenty of other wild animals enjoy similar protections to wasps in Germany including beetles, bumblebees and butterflies as well as squirrels, moles and wolves, for example. 

So generally speaking, killing wildlife in Germany is not advisable.

READ ALSO: How to deal with fruit flies (and other critters) plaguing your German flat

How to deal with wasps legally

One German phrase about wasps is quite telling. It goes: Töte einen und es werden fünf an der Beerdigung teilnehmen (Kill one and five will attend the funeral).

There is some scientific truth to this idiom. It’s been observed that a wasp in distress can send a pheromone signal that attracts other wasps, as if it is calling for backup.

So rather than killing a wasp, or violently chasing it away, the best advice for dealing with wasps is to keep calm and avoid swatting at it directly.

Wasps are attracted to scents – namely food smells – so good hygiene measures like keeping foods sealed and not letting food covered garbage pile up are among the best preventions.

Keeping drinks covered also helps.

Wasps’ sensitivity to scent can also be used against them. Place some cloves in a lemon wedge, or burn some coffee grounds to deter them.

If all else fails, a small offering can distract a couple wasps and keep them busy elsewhere while you’re eating. A dab of jam or a bit overripe fruit left a few metres from your picnic table should do the trick. 

The wasps may still check out your spread, but after being shooed away a couple times, they’ll likely figure it out.

About wasps in Germany

Wasps (Wespen in German) are also called yellowjackets or hornets and are closely related to bees and ants. They live in family groups in a nest with an egg-laying queen and a group of non-reproducing workers.

According to the environmental organisation BUND, there are around 630 unique wasp species in Germany.

Wasps play important roles in their local ecosystems as both predators and prey.

A small wasp colony can eat up to 3,000 other insect pests per day in the form of flies, mosquitoes, etc. 

They are also useful as pollinators for some flowering plants.