How Wasps Survive Winter
WouterDuring winter, wasps need to find a safe place to hibernate. Their nests may be located in walls, basements, or attics. During the day, the wasps are active. However, they are dormant at night. During the winter, they cannot fly. The wasps will die if they cannot find a source of food.
Social wasps are species that live in colonies within their nests. These colonies are active during the spring and summer. After summer ends, the mated females hibernate for the winter.
The wasps may build a nest on a tree or in a woodpile. The nest is made of six or seven hexagonal cells. A female wasp lays eggs in each cell. These eggs will hatch into young wasps. As the nest grows, the wasps help to care for the new larvae. The wasps also help the queen with tending the nest.
After hibernation, the queen returns to a safe place to begin a new colony. This new colony will consist of workers and queens. As winter sets in, the wasps will stop laying eggs.
The last eggs to hatch become fertile females. The queens then mate with other wasps. The fertile queens hibernate for the winter.
In the spring, the mated females wake up and build their nests. The nests are usually not reused the following year.
As the winter progresses, the queen wasps will die off. The wasps will die of starvation. They will also die of old age. This is why it is important to keep the nest as clean and dry as possible.
