Invasive stinging wasps force trail closure on North Carolina island

Mark Price, The Charlotte Observer on Oct 5, 2026

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A popular trail on North Carolina’s Bald Head Island has been closed due to “invasive yellow wasp” attacks on hikers, officials say.

The north side of the Bald Head Woods Reserve Trail will remain blocked at both ends until the nest can be eradicated, Bald Head Island officials said in an Oct. 2 news release. The south side of the trail remains accessible, officials said.

“A group of four were walking the trail and their dog found the nest,” village officials told The Charlotte Observer in an email.

“It is our understanding they were stung multiple times. Public Works staff who responded were also stung multiple times.”

The island’s Public Works Department is working to destroy the nest as a public safety threat, officials said. “If initial efforts are not successful, the village may seek assistance from N.C. Coastal Reserve personnel; this property is state-owned and managed,” the department said.

The trail travels through The Bald Head Woods Coastal Reserve, a 186-acre maritime forest ecosystem that is part of the North Carolina Coastal Reserve.

Village officials aren’t yet sure of the wasp species involved, but state officials reported in August that invasive Asian yellow-legged hornets had found their way to Union and Guilford counties.

The species is known to build nests the size of a basketball, which house hundreds of hornets, according to the N.C. Department of Agriculture & Consumer Affairs.

“This hornet is a predator of honey bees, as well as native bees and insects. Yellow-legged hornets exhibit ‘hawking’ behavior by hovering near the entrances of honey bee hives and capturing honey bees as they exit or enter the hive,” state experts say.

Asian yellow-legged hornets have a painful sting that can cause a redness and local swelling, and multiple stings at once can lead to vomiting, diarrhea, headache and a drop in blood pressure, according to a March 2026 study published in ScienceDirect.

The sting can be fatal for humans in cases of an allergic reaction, the study says.

Bald Head Island is about 170 miles southeast from downtown Raleigh. It can be reached only by boat.

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