When Does Wasps Die?
Unlike most stinging insects, wasps can survive in colder temperatures. However, wasps have a limited lifespan. The average lifespan of a wasp is between twelve and twenty days.
Wasps are social insects that live in groups. These groups consist of a queen and several male and female workers. Queens are responsible for plant pollination. Workers mainly gather food from the plants they live on. They also use nectar from flowers.
The average wasp colony contains around 10,000 insects. This number increases as the temperature rises. However, the nests become inactive as the autumn months draw to a close.
As the weather starts to get colder, the nests are abandoned and the workers begin to die off. The queen wasp is the only wasp in the nest that can lay eggs. These eggs are used to produce the next generation of workers.
The queen lays around twenty eggs every day, but only a small number actually result in an active nest. The remaining workers fend for themselves. As the winter progresses, the queen’s ability to lay eggs diminishes.
The queen wasp can live for up to a year. However, some queens die during hibernation, mostly due to predators. If winter is warm enough, the queen will emerge early. However, most queen wasps die during the winter months. Those that are able to survive the winter will be able to re-emerge in the spring.
Wasps are not a good match for cold weather. They can survive for months, but they do not like being cold.