A thriving social bee colony, such as a honeybee hive, does not typically repel predatory social wasps like yellow jackets or hornets. Instead, the abundance of resources within a hive—stored honey and developing young—makes the colony a high-value target for these opportunistic predators. This dynamic sets the stage for a constant conflict between two different types of social insects.
The Bee-Wasp Ecological Relationship
A bee colony acts as an attractant for wasps, especially later in the foraging season. The relationship is primarily one of predator and prey. Predatory wasps are motivated by the need for two distinct food sources to sustain their own colonies.
They seek protein by hunting adult bees, larvae, and pupae to feed their developing young. Wasps also raid hives for carbohydrates, consuming honey and nectar to fuel their own activity. This predatory pressure increases in the late summer and fall as wasp colonies mature and require more food for their reproductive phase.
The most significant interaction remains the direct threat wasps pose to the entire bee colony as a source of animal protein. A healthy, robust bee colony is generally able to defend itself, but a smaller or weakened colony may be quickly overwhelmed and destroyed for its contents.
Active Bee Colony Defense Mechanisms
The primary defense against a wasp invasion is specialized guard bees posted at the hive entrance. These bees detect approaching threats and release alarm pheromones to quickly recruit reinforcements from inside the colony. For a physical defense, many honeybee species use propolis, a resinous material, to narrow the hive entrance. This creates a bottleneck that makes it easier for a few bees to defend against larger attackers.
Asian honeybees employ a technique known as “heat balling” against giant hornets. When a hornet is detected, dozens or hundreds of worker bees quickly swarm and surround the intruder, vibrating their flight muscles to generate heat. The resulting temperature can rise to approximately 45 degrees Celsius, which is lethal to the hornet but survivable for the bees.
Giant honeybees also exhibit a coordinated “shimmering” behavior, where workers on the surface of the comb rapidly flip their abdomens in a wave-like pattern. This visual display is thought to confuse and deter approaching predatory hornets. Certain Asian honeybee colonies have even been observed collecting and plastering animal feces around their nest entrances, hypothesized to repel hornets by masking the hive’s scent.
Wasp Predation and Colony Raiding Strategies
Wasp attacks on bee colonies follow a strategic sequence that maximizes the predator’s efficiency. The process begins with a single scout wasp locating a bee hive and assessing its defensive strength. If the scout determines the colony is a viable target, it may mark the area or return with nestmates to initiate a sustained assault.
During the attack, a wasp often employs a hovering technique known as “hawking” near the hive entrance. This allows the wasp to snatch returning or departing forager bees directly out of the air, minimizing its exposure to the guard bees. Other wasps may target bees on the landing board or on the ground outside the nest.
Once a bee is captured, the wasp quickly dismembers it, a process called sequestration. The wasp typically removes the head and abdomen, flying away with the protein-rich thorax to feed its own larvae. This methodical predation depletes the bee colony’s workforce, which can eventually lead to the collapse of a weaker hive if the wasp pressure is sustained.