Why Does Wasps Die?
WouterDespite its name, wasps don’t die off all at once. They do not die from stinging, but rather from starvation. Their main food source is nectar from plants. They also gather food from flowers in the spring. As winter approaches, the food source diminishes, forcing wasps out of their nests.
When the temperature drops in autumn, worker wasps prepare for hibernation. They are also busy looking for sugary food sources. During the colder months, they begin to die off.
A queen wasp’s life span is much shorter than that of a worker. She is the only one in the nest who can lay fertilised eggs. In addition, she has the ability to mate with another queen and start a new colony. When a queen dies, the rest of the colony becomes inactive. This is due to the chemical signals that the dead wasp produces. These signals alert other wasps to swarm.
Most wasp nests die off during winter. Some queens and female wasps die due to starvation and predators. Others die of old age. In addition, some queens die during hibernation due to a warm winter.
In the spring, a new queen wasp re-emerges. She will mate with other queens and start a new nest. She will lay 10 to 20 eggs in the nest. The eggs will produce workers. These workers will feed the larvae that emerge. Eventually, the larvae will regurgitate the insect’s exoskeleton.
Queen wasps are responsible for plant pollination, much like honey bees. They are often extremely territorial. They will attack and defend their nest. Some species are venomous, making them dangerous to humans.
