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Left: Paper wasp nest (probably Vespula vulgaris). Right: Hornet workers emerging from their nest behind an air brick
Life cycle
The year for social wasps starts during the spring when fertile female wasps and hornets emerge from the sheltered places where they have overwintered. These are queens that will search for suitable locations where they can begin to build their nests. Initially the queen is on her own and has to feed herself and gather wood fibres to construct the first phase of her nest. This starter nest is not much bigger than a golf ball. It contains a small comb within an outer envelope, with about half a dozen cells where the queen lays fertilised eggs and raises her first brood of larvae. These will become worker wasps, which are infertile females. As the number of worker wasps increases, they can take over the food gathering and nest building activities, allowing the queen to remain in the nest and concentrate on laying eggs.
When at peak strength in mid-late summer, a nest can contain more than a thousand adult wasps. At that time the queen will lay some unfertilised eggs. Larvae from those eggs will become male wasps. Some of the larvae from fertilised eggs will be given additional food as larvae and this allows them to become queen wasps with functional ovaries. Mating takes place outside of the nest.
The old queen’s egg-laying begins to tail off, signalling the decline and end of the colony. Nests of Dolichovespula species usually die out in late summer, while those of Vespula species and the hornet can persist into late autumn. At the end of the season, the old queen, males and workers all die. Only the young queens overwinter. They leave the old nest and seek shelter in places such as in outbuildings, under loose bark and in dense conifer hedges.
The exception to the above is the Cuckoo wasp, Vespula austriaca. Overwintered queens of the Cuckoo wasp are unable to initiate nests of their own. They seek out and enter established nests of the Red wasp, Vespula rufa. The Red wasp queen is killed and the colony is taken over by the Cuckoo wasp queen. The eggs she lays are all destined to become males or young queens. She has no need to produce worker wasps of her own as her larvae will be fed by the Red wasp workers.
Role of social wasps in gardens
Wasps and hornets are generally beneficial by feeding their larvae on other insects, some of which may be pests of garden plants. Queen wasps visit flowers in spring to feed on nectar and the workers and males often do so in late summer-autumn. Like other flower-visiting insects, they can transfer pollen between plants and bring about pollination.
Wasps can also be a nuisance, largely because of their attention to sweet substances in late summer. They will feed on ripening fruits and cause annoyance at picnics and barbeques. Worker wasps can inflict painful stings but generally only do so in defence of themselves or their nests. Wasp and hornet nests sometimes need to be destroyed but they should be tolerated where they do not pose a risk to people.
If the Asian hornet does become established in Britain, it will be a more significant problem. It preys almost entirely on honeybees, particularly targeting bees as they leave or enter their hives. This makes honeybees reluctant to go out to forage, which has an impact on pollination and honey production. Weakened beehives will be invaded by Asian hornets, which kill the adult bees and carry off the larvae and pupae as food for the hornet larvae.
Other sources of information
Websites
Website of the Bees, Wasps and Ants Recording Society (BWARS)
Images and information by Steven Falk
What do wasps do? Natural history Museum website page.
Books
Edwards, R. (1980) Social wasps – their biology and control. Rentokil Library
Social Wasps Field Guide sheet (1997) Peregrine Productions.
By Andrew Halstead reviewed by Andrew Salisbury edited by Steve Head
Above: Hornets, Vespa crabro. Very fine looking insects!
The Asian hornet, Vespa velutina, was accidentally introduced into France in 2004 where it is now widespread, and has spread to other mainland European countries. Up to October 2018 there have been 13 confirmed sightings in Britain, and six nests have been destroyed. It is likely that the Asian hornet will reach Britain before long, and is considered a potential threat to honeybees. Sightings can be reported here, or through other channels described in the Defra website here.
Above: Two views of an Asian hornet queen Vespa velutina photographed in France where it was overwintering under bark
Biology
Unlike bees, which feed entirely on nectar and pollen, social wasps have a more carnivorous diet. They may visit flowers to feed on nectar, especially queen wasps in spring when they are initiating their nests. At other times social wasps prey on other insects and also feed on carrion. Their larvae are fed a diet of chewed up insects and other flesh. In return, the adult wasps receive a sweet liquid that is secreted by the larvae. In late summer, when there are few larvae developing in the nest, worker wasps spend more time getting sweet liquids from ripe fruits, jam sandwiches, etc.
Dolichovespula species of social wasp make their nests in open air situations, such as amongst the branches of hedges and shrubs, or under the eaves on the outside of a building. Common wasp and German wasp make their nests either underground, often taking over an abandoned rodent tunnel, or in dark cavities, such as inside a roof space. The Red wasp makes its nests underground, while the hornet mainly nests inside buildings or in hollow trees.
The combs within a wasp nest are arranged in horizontal layers, unlike the vertical combs made by honeybees. Another difference is the material that the combs and nest are made from. Honeybees use wax that is secreted from the bodies of worker bees. Social wasps use a paper-like material to construct the combs and the outer envelope around the combs. This material is made mainly by the worker wasps but the queen also does this in the early stage of nest development. They use their jaws to rasp wood fibres from fences, sheds and dead wood on trees. The chewed up fibres are mixed with the wasps’ saliva to make a soft paste that can be moulded to form the hexagonal cells within the combs and to make the outer coating of the nest.
Social wasps
Social wasps, which include the hornet, are familiar insects in gardens during the summer months. The larger size and a predominately yellow and brown colours help to distinguish the hornet from other social wasps, which are mainly yellow and black. Jennifer Owen caught 7 species of social wasps in her Leicester garden, numerically overwhelmingly of the Common wasp and the German wasp, and did not find the hornet.
Species in Britain and Ireland
The Common wasp, Vespula vulgaris, German wasp, Vespula germanica, and Red wasp, Vespula rufa, are widespread in Britain and Ireland, as are the Tree wasp, Dolichovespula sylvestris, and the Norwegian wasp, Dolichovespula norwegica. Two other European species, the Median wasp, Dolichovespula media, and the Saxon wasp, Dolichovespula saxonica, became established in Britain during the 1980s but are not yet in Ireland. The cuckoo wasp, Vespula austriaca, is an ‘antisocial’ wasp that takes over nests of the Red wasp.
Above left: Tree wasp, Dolichovespula sylvestris. Right: Median wasp queen Dolichovespula media
The hornet, Vespa crabro, is widespread in England but uncommon in Wales and absent from Scotland and Ireland. Hornets are insects of lowland woodland, but will come into gardens with mature trees. Queen hornets can be up to 28mm long whereas those of other social wasps are up to18mm. Their large size makes them seem threatening, but in fact hornets are relatively docile as wasps go and will only attack if you threaten their nests.
Above: Faces of the two commonest wasps. Left, the Common wasp Vespula vulgaris. which has a vertical black "nose" bar on the yellow patch below its eyes. Right, the German wasp V. germanica which has three black spots instead.
Left: A young queen common wasp in her new paper nest, with five visible cells containing her first eggs.
Social wasps
Social wasps, which include the hornet, are familiar insects in gardens during the summer months. The larger size and a predominately yellow and brown colours help to distinguish the hornet from other social wasps, which are mainly yellow and black. Jennifer Owen caught 7 species of social wasps in her Leicester garden, numerically overwhelmingly of the Common wasp and the German wasp, and did not find the hornet.
Species in Britain and Ireland
The Common wasp, Vespula vulgaris, German wasp, Vespula germanica, and Red wasp, Vespula rufa, are widespread in Britain and Ireland, as are the Tree wasp, Dolichovespula sylvestris, and the Norwegian wasp, Dolichovespula norwegica. Two other European species, the Median wasp, Dolichovespula media, and the Saxon wasp, Dolichovespula saxonica, became established in Britain during the 1980s but are not yet in Ireland. The cuckoo wasp, Vespula austriaca, is an ‘antisocial’ wasp that takes over nests of the Red wasp.
Above left: A young queen common wasp in her new paper nest, with five visible cells containing her first eggs. Faces of the two commonest wasps. Centre: the common wasp Vespula vulgaris. which has a vertical black "nose" bar on the yellow patch below its eyes. Right: the German wasp V. germanica which has three black spots instead.
Above: Hornets, Vespa crabro. Very fine looking insects!
The Asian hornet, Vespa velutina, was accidentally introduced into France in 2004 where it is now widespread, and has spread to other mainland European countries. Up to October 2018 there have been 13 confirmed sightings in Britain, and six nests have been destroyed. It is likely that the Asian hornet will reach Britain before long, and is considered a potential threat to honeybees. Sightings can be reported here, or through other channels described in the Defra website here.
Above: Two views of an Asian hornet queen Vespa velutina photographed in France where it was overwintering under bark
Biology
Unlike bees, which feed entirely on nectar and pollen, social wasps have a more carnivorous diet. They may visit flowers to feed on nectar, especially queen wasps in spring when they are initiating their nests. At other times social wasps prey on other insects and also feed on carrion. Their larvae are fed a diet of chewed up insects and other flesh. In return, the adult wasps receive a sweet liquid that is secreted by the larvae. In late summer, when there are few larvae developing in the nest, worker wasps spend more time getting sweet liquids from ripe fruits, jam sandwiches, etc.
Dolichovespula species of social wasp make their nests in open air situations, such as amongst the branches of hedges and shrubs, or under the eaves on the outside of a building. Common wasp and German wasp make their nests either underground, often taking over an abandoned rodent tunnel, or in dark cavities, such as inside a roof space. The Red wasp makes its nests underground, while the hornet mainly nests inside buildings or in hollow trees.
The combs within a wasp nest are arranged in horizontal layers, unlike the vertical combs made by honeybees. Another difference is the material that the combs and nest are made from. Honeybees use wax that is secreted from the bodies of worker bees. Social wasps use a paper-like material to construct the combs and the outer envelope around the combs. This material is made mainly by the worker wasps but the queen also does this in the early stage of nest development. They use their jaws to rasp wood fibres from fences, sheds and dead wood on trees. The chewed up fibres are mixed with the wasps’ saliva to make a soft paste that can be moulded to form the hexagonal cells within the combs and to make the outer coating of the nest.
Above left: Tree wasp, Dolichovesula sylvestris. Right: Median wasp queen Dolichovespula media
The hornet, Vespa crabro, is widespread in England but uncommon in Wales and absent from Scotland and Ireland. Hornets are insects of lowland woodland, but will come into gardens with mature trees. Queen hornets can be up to 28mm long whereas those of other social wasps are up to18mm. Their large size makes them seem threatening, but in fact hornets are relatively docile as wasps go and will only attack if you threaten their nests.
Left: Paper wasp nest (probably Vespula vulgaris). Right: Hornet workers emerging from their nest behind an air brick
Life cycle
The year for social wasps starts during the spring when fertile female wasps and hornets emerge from the sheltered places where they have overwintered. These are queens that will search for suitable locations where they can begin to build their nests. Initially the queen is on her own and has to feed herself and gather wood fibres to construct the first phase of her nest. This starter nest is not much bigger than a golf ball. It contains a small comb within an outer envelope, with about half a dozen cells where the queen lays fertilised eggs and raises her first brood of larvae. These will become worker wasps, which are infertile females. As the number of worker wasps increases, they can take over the food gathering and nest building activities, allowing the queen to remain in the nest and concentrate on laying eggs.
When at peak strength in mid-late summer, a nest can contain more than a thousand adult wasps. At that time the queen will lay some unfertilised eggs. Larvae from those eggs will become male wasps. Some of the larvae from fertilised eggs will be given additional food as larvae and this allows them to become queen wasps with functional ovaries. Mating takes place outside of the nest.
The old queen’s egg-laying begins to tail off, signalling the decline and end of the colony. Nests of Dolichovespula species usually die out in late summer, while those of Vespula species and the hornet can persist into late autumn. At the end of the season, the old queen, males and workers all die. Only the young queens overwinter. They leave the old nest and seek shelter in places such as in outbuildings, under loose bark and in dense conifer hedges.
The exception to the above is the Cuckoo wasp, Vespula austriaca. Overwintered queens of the Cuckoo wasp are unable to initiate nests of their own. They seek out and enter established nests of the Red wasp, Vespula rufa. The Red wasp queen is killed and the colony is taken over by the Cuckoo wasp queen. The eggs she lays are all destined to become males or young queens. She has no need to produce worker wasps of her own as her larvae will be fed by the Red wasp workers.
Role of social wasps in gardens
Wasps and hornets are generally beneficial by feeding their larvae on other insects, some of which may be pests of garden plants. Queen wasps visit flowers in spring to feed on nectar and the workers and males often do so in late summer-autumn. Like other flower-visiting insects, they can transfer pollen between plants and bring about pollination.
Wasps can also be a nuisance, largely because of their attention to sweet substances in late summer. They will feed on ripening fruits and cause annoyance at picnics and barbeques. Worker wasps can inflict painful stings but generally only do so in defence of themselves or their nests. Wasp and hornet nests sometimes need to be destroyed but they should be tolerated where they do not pose a risk to people.
If the Asian hornet does become established in Britain, it will be a more significant problem. It preys almost entirely on honeybees, particularly targeting bees as they leave or enter their hives. This makes honeybees reluctant to go out to forage, which has an impact on pollination and honey production. Weakened beehives will be invaded by Asian hornets, which kill the adult bees and carry off the larvae and pupae as food for the hornet larvae.
Other sources of information
Websites
Images and information by Steven Falk
Books
Edwards, R. (1980) Social wasps – their biology and control. Rentokil Library
Social Wasps Field Guide sheet (1997) Peregrine Productions.
By Andrew Halstead reviewed by Andrew Salisbury edited by Steve Head
Garden Wildlife
Garden Wildlife
