Trialling Hawkeye wasp trap and lure

April 2026

For those who live on the North Shore of Auckland, the Hawkeye traps will look familiar. They were used as part of the MPI response to the yellow-legged hornet problem.

As I wrote in my last post about the NoPests trap, I found it ill-designed for the job at hand. When I found three northern wattle moths and an endemic Austrocidaria parora moth in it one morning - all safely released - I had to take it down permanently, which is a shame because it cost $30 and is definitely the most aesthetically pleasing wasp trap.

I was keen to try a different commercial wasp trap and lure, and the Glenfield community Facebook page, which has had regular hornet updates from locals, recommended the Hawkeye lure as being effective and cheaper than the NoPests lure, which I found to be really good. The trap and lure came as a starter pack for $18.40 plus p&p.

The Hawkeye trap did not come with something to hang it with so I had to go hunting to find something strong enough. In the end I used garden wire. I note MPI used cord. The inserts to the entries can be trimmed to make a bigger hole, as MPI did for the hornets, but I left them the original size. This starter pack is designed for low infestations, which is what we have in the garden, away from the nests.

The Hawkeye wasp trap and lure

I am not knowledgeable enough to know if my trapping at this time of year, with a mind to catching the drones and queens out for mating, is genius or pointless. Nevertheless, it is a good time to test the effectiveness of the lure and trap ready for September and the post-hibernation emergence of the new queens, because the NoPests lure showed me there are a lot more vespula wasps around than I thought.

I should emphasise that I cannot compare the Hawkeye trap and lure with the NoPests versions because the weather has been very different, they have been out for differing amounts of time (because of the weather) and in slightly different spots. The wasp activity is not comparable so the effectiveness is not comparable.

Targeted species

• 43 vespula wasps - both German and common

• 1 Australian paper wasp

• No hornets

Vespula Wasps

I wish I knew a worker from a queen from a drone. There is a size difference between the wasps I've caught, but most seem a fair size. The reference images online look so clear, but faced with a heap of dead wasps strained from the lure, I am just not sure what I am catching. It's definitely both German and common wasps though. That's another 40-odd wasps not taking nectar from the bees and butterflies, so that's a positive.

Paper Wasps

Only one sucker made it into the trap so it probably had FOMO rather than be attracted to the lure. There are plenty of Southern Australian paper wasps in the garden currently - they are more visible now in numbers than at any other time this year whereas before they have been quite under the radar with the European paper wasps dominating. I saw one interfere with a female monarch, because it wanted the tropical milkweed flowers to itself, and the monarch didn't stay after that (sound of me booing).

By-catch

• Lots of flies

• 1 Australian raspy cricket nymph

• 1 honeybee

• No moths, not even micro-moths, and no butterflies.

By-catch will always happen and I think it was bad luck a bee was caught. The trap is quite near the Mexican bush sage, which is covered in them. The Australian raspy cricket is not native and may be affecting the Auckland tree wētā population so that's no real loss. However, I am very pleased to see no moths were caught at all, even micro-moths, let alone any butterflies.

Conclusion

The Hawkeye lure was very effective and with it being more affordable I didn't feel the need to water it down. Wasps found the trap quickly and there was always wasp activity around the Hawkeye trap. This should definitely not be used next to paths or houses.

The trap keeps the rain out, is easy to clean and looks more attractive than my homemade bottle traps. However, I did see wasps escaping from the Hawkeye trap. Three came out in 10 minutes, so that is not good. I have watched the trap on other occasions without the wasps figuring out how to escape, so I am not sure what to make of that. The lack of lepidoptera by-catch was very gratifying.

The wasps fall in the liquid when they tire, but they can crawl out again and up the side. I wonder if a drop of dishwashing liquid will help decrease escapees. I will add some to the strained lure, put it back out, and see if it helps keep the wasps down in the liquid more effectively, reducing the chance of escape, or whether that will make the lure less attractive. I'll see.

In conclusion, both the lure and the trap offer real value for money and I have high hopes that this combination will help reduce the queens in spring. I bought another of these traps to hold the NoPests lure so I have both these effective lures working for me in the garden when the queens emerge after winter. At that time of year I don't need to worry about what I am catching - they'll all be queens!