Wasps, often a common sight during warmer months, seem to vanish as temperatures drop. This disappearance leads many to wonder about their fate during the colder seasons. While the majority of a wasp colony does not survive the winter, certain species, particularly the queen, possess a remarkable adaptation that allows them to endure the cold and continue their species.
The Queen’s Survival Strategy
As autumn progresses and temperatures fall, the social structure of a wasp colony undergoes a significant change. Worker wasps, which are sterile females, and male wasps, known as drones, complete their life cycles and perish, due to dwindling food and cold weather. This leaves only the newly mated queen to survive the winter months.
The queen’s ability to withstand winter is attributed to a state of suspended development called diapause, similar to hibernation. During diapause, the queen’s metabolic rate slows significantly, allowing her to conserve energy without needing to eat. To prepare for this dormant phase, the queen accumulates substantial fat reserves as her primary energy source. Her body chemistry also undergoes changes, including the production of glycerol, a natural antifreeze-like substance that helps prevent ice crystals from forming within her cells, protecting her from freezing.
Where Wasps Seek Shelter
To successfully overwinter, the queen wasp seeks sheltered, protected locations that offer insulation from extreme cold and safety from predators. These sites need to be dry to prevent insect-killing fungi and ice crystal formation. Common natural overwintering spots include crevices under tree bark, within rotting logs, or beneath large rocks and leaf piles.
Queens frequently utilize human-made structures for refuge. They may find shelter within wall cavities, attics, sheds, garages, or under roof eaves. Some species might even burrow into loose soil or use abandoned rodent burrows. These secluded spots provide the stable environment for the queen to remain in diapause until spring.
The Start of a New Season
As winter recedes and spring temperatures consistently rise, the queen wasp awakens from her dormant state. Her first priority upon emergence is to find sustenance, often seeking nectar from early-blooming flowers to replenish energy. She then begins the task of establishing a new colony.
The queen selects a suitable, often sheltered, location to construct her initial nest, which she builds from chewed wood fibers mixed with her saliva, creating a paper-like material. She builds a small structure containing a few hexagonal cells where she lays her first batch of eggs. These eggs will hatch into larvae, which the queen feeds and cares for them. Once these first offspring mature into worker wasps, they take over the responsibilities of foraging for food, expanding the nest, and caring for subsequent broods, allowing the queen to focus solely on laying eggs.