What Family Do Wasps Belong To?
WouterOften people ask, “what family do wasps belong to?” The answer is that most wasps are solitary, but there are also some that form colonies. These are social wasps, which are part of the family Vespidae. They are predators that feed on other insects and plants. They are also important pollinators.
There are four superfamilies of wasps. Each superfamily has a different nesting structure. Depending on the species, the nest may be aerial, underground, or supraterrestrial. Generally, wasps make nests in shrubs and trees. Unlike ants, however, they don’t build soil cavities. They use preexisting holes and burrows.
The nest of a wasp consists of chewed plant material. The fibers of the nest are mixed with the wasp’s saliva to make a doughy mass. The nest is constructed around a small comb. The comb helps the wasp move around its nest.
In the spring, the queen begins to lay eggs. These eggs hatch into workers, and the workers enlarge the nest. The nest is built from chewed plant material and contains several layers of cells. The queen chooses a suitable site for the nest.
Certain Vespula species build aerial nests in shrubs. Other Vespula species build nests underground. The nests of Dolichovespula species are smaller than those of Vespula species. These nests are generally found in leaf litter or leaf litter and soil.
Solitary wasps are parasitoids. These wasps oviposit on other insects and lay their eggs in their bodies. They feed their larvae on the insects they have paralyzed. Some of these parasitic wasps drill through the bark of trees and wood. They also carry prey to feed the larvae.
