There are many different types of flying bee-like pests that can invade your yard, including carpenter bees, hornets, paper wasps, and more. The two most common found in the Winnetka area are:

• Honeybee: In a normal healthy hive there are anywhere from 30,000 to 70,000 bees. A queen can lay up to 1,500 eggs in a single day. Since your skin is thick, when a honeybee stings you, its stinger will come off in your skin. When you think of honeybees you might think of the boxy hives used by farmers. If the colony is wild, they are happy enough to build their nest in your attic or behind your exterior walls. You should never plug up the entrance to a bee colony, because they will chew their way into your home to get out.
• Wasps: There are a lot of different species of wasp. Some are red; others are yellow and black, while still others can be white and black. Some varieties of wasp build massive nests on the eaves of your home. Some, like the bald faced hornet builds its basketball shaped nest hanging from a tree. Yellow jackets and bumble bees are happy to build their nests underground in abandoned rodent dens. Unlike honeybees, wasps can sting you multiple times. They won’t lose their stinger. When the temperature rises in the heat of the summer, wasps can become extremely aggressive and will attack with little provocation. Since they use pheromones, the entire colony will descend upon you.