Introduction
Wasps are communal creatures who build nests to breed their young and eventually make colonies. From yellow jackets to hornets to paper wasps, they all build nests for the same purpose. We tend to perceive wasps as obnoxious pests that can ruin our picnics and build a nest in our homes. But despite their annoying behavior, just like bees, wasps have important roles in the ecosystem — not only pollinating flowers and crops, but also controlling crop pests and harmful insects.
Another interesting fact about wasps is how they meticulously build their nest. Although each species builds nests that differ in size, space, and overall structure, the process of constructing them is typically the same. Common ingredient? Wood!
Wasps Nests: Construction
Construction of the wasps' nest begins with the wasp queen choosing a construction site. These include but are not limited to:
- Underground
- A tree branch
- Against a house
- Just beneath the roof of a house
- Inside a garage
Having decided on a site, the worker wasps then scrape and chew wood particles off fences, branches, cardboard, or anything that has a wooden substance to it. After breaking down these wood fibers in their mouth, the wasps mix them with water and their saliva, creating soft, sticky paper pulp. The wasps then fly to the construction site and use their front legs and mandibles to pour out this paper pulp on the site's surface. When the wet fiber paste dries, it transforms into a firm paper foundation from which the remaining nest will be extended.
Wasps Nests: Architecture
While yellow jackets construct umbrella-shaped nests underground, hornets build larger football-like nests. All of their nests have a common underlying architecture — the nest encapsulates lots of tiny hexagonal cells which serve as rooms for the queen wasp to lay her eggs and breed her younglings.
Since the prime purpose of a wasps nest is to breed the young and build a colony, these hexagonal cells require extra protection. The wasps keep adding paper pulp in a hexagonal fashion first to create those inner cells. Once this phase is complete, the queen wasp adds further layers of paper, completely enveloping the cells to protect them against predators and harsh weather.
Wasps Nests: Timeline
Technically wasps inhabit their nests for one season at most, typically from spring to the end of summer or the beginning of autumn. By autumn the nest usually reaches its peak size. As winter approaches, the colony starts dying out due to food shortage. Only a fertilized queen survives by hibernating in old trees or a house's basement, roof, or attic. Old wasp nests are never reused.
When to Administer Wasp Nests
It is well-known that yellow jackets, hornets, and paper wasps sting if they're provoked or threatened. However, it isn't always justifiable cause to dismantle their nest.
Wasps nests serve an important purpose — hornets and paper wasps prey on insects including plant pests like grubs, caterpillars, and weevils. However, certain yellow jacket species are the kind that you should always be on the lookout for:
- Southern yellow jackets
- Eastern yellow jackets
- Western yellow jackets
- German yellow jackets