queen common wasp

Vespula vulgaris

Facts

Why not download our queen common wasp fact sheet?

  queen common wasp fact sheet

The queen is the first wasp you’ll see in early spring when she searches for a nesting site
 

She has the familiar vivid yellow and black stripes, triangular head and sting of the smaller workers
 

The queen is about 20 - 25mm, workers 11 - 14mm

Where found

Wasps are attracted to sweet food and drinks

Nests are usually only seen as tiny entrance holes, usually underground but also in cavities in walls, ceiling, logs and trees

When to look for

• Early spring - queens appear from February

Fabulous wasp facts

• Wasps help to balance nature by removing thousands of aphids, caterpillars and fly larvae
  
  
• They pollinate plants and recycle nutrients through scavenging
  
  
• Unlike bees, wasps have no wax glands and construct their nests out of chewed wood mixed with their own saliva. They scrape off small pieces of wood with their powerful jaws, making a sound audible to the human ear
  
  
• Wasps are eaten by spiders and badgers
  
  
• In about 422 BC the Greek comedy writer Aristophanes wrote a satirical play called “The Wasps”
  
  
• For information on how to avoid wasp stings visit Wasps and Sting Prevention