Slices of lives of Paper Wasps (Polistinae): A journey through macro world.
Inspecting the chamber.
The Polistinae are eusocial wasps closely related to the more familiar yellowjackets, but placed in their own subfamily, containing four tribes; with some 1100 species total, it is the second most diverse subfamily within Vespidae, and while most species are tropical or subtropical, they include some of the most frequently-encountered large wasps in temperate regions. They are also known as paper wasps, which is a misleading term since other wasps (including yellowjackets) also build nests out of paper, and because some Epiponine wasps (e.g., Polybia emaciata) build theirs out of mud [1], nonetheless, the name "paper wasp" seems to apply mostly, but not exclusively, to the Polistinae, especially the Polistini. The brood cells are arranged in a hexagonal array, similar to the comb structure in a honey bee nest. At least one Epiponine species (Brachygastra mellifica) stores honey in the comb, one of the only insects other than bees to store honey.
Characteristics of Polistinae are:
•The queens (reproductive females) are morphologically similar to workers, though sometimes slightly larger or differently colored.
•The abdomen is spindle-shaped, often petiolate.
•The antennae of males are curled.
•The nest is sometimes open (the nests of vespines are typically enclosed in several layers of paper).
Colony life cycle
Nest of a Polistes
Polistine wasps found colonies in one of two ways. In some species, nests are founded by a small number of reproductive females, possibly a single one. One of the foundresses eventually acquires dominance over the other and is the sole reproducer. The nest is open (not enclosed by an envelope) and contains a single comb.
In the other group, called "swarm-founding", the nest is founded by a large number of workers and a few queens. It is usually protected by an envelope, like a vespine nest.
Paper inventors
Who first invented paper on Earth? The Chinese or the Egyptians… What about water resistant paper… who invented that? Don’t bother, before both of these human civilizations invent paper, humble insects such as paper wasps invented paper, that water resistant one! Whoever has been bitten by wasps would not dare to call them humble! However, their aggressive defense mechanism seems to have outshone their nest building capabilities. Paper wasps are the members of the vespid subfamily, Polistinae, which gather fiber from dead wood and plant stems, mix it with saliva and use it to construct water-resistant hexagonal shaped nests made of gray or brown papery material. Their chitin-like saliva is primarily protein with high proline content. When mixed with the cellulose, it dries quickly and irreversibly to a water insoluble, water repellant surface. So human beings wake up and invent a water resistant paper which is biodegradable as well! (www.caleidoscope.in/caleidoscope-blog/animal-inspirations-1)
Slices of lives of Paper Wasps (Polistinae): A journey through macro world.
Inspecting the chamber.
The Polistinae are eusocial wasps closely related to the more familiar yellowjackets, but placed in their own subfamily, containing four tribes; with some 1100 species total, it is the second most diverse subfamily within Vespidae, and while most species are tropical or subtropical, they include some of the most frequently-encountered large wasps in temperate regions. They are also known as paper wasps, which is a misleading term since other wasps (including yellowjackets) also build nests out of paper, and because some Epiponine wasps (e.g., Polybia emaciata) build theirs out of mud [1], nonetheless, the name "paper wasp" seems to apply mostly, but not exclusively, to the Polistinae, especially the Polistini. The brood cells are arranged in a hexagonal array, similar to the comb structure in a honey bee nest. At least one Epiponine species (Brachygastra mellifica) stores honey in the comb, one of the only insects other than bees to store honey.
Characteristics of Polistinae are:
•The queens (reproductive females) are morphologically similar to workers, though sometimes slightly larger or differently colored.
•The abdomen is spindle-shaped, often petiolate.
•The antennae of males are curled.
•The nest is sometimes open (the nests of vespines are typically enclosed in several layers of paper).
Colony life cycle
Nest of a Polistes
Polistine wasps found colonies in one of two ways. In some species, nests are founded by a small number of reproductive females, possibly a single one. One of the foundresses eventually acquires dominance over the other and is the sole reproducer. The nest is open (not enclosed by an envelope) and contains a single comb.
In the other group, called "swarm-founding", the nest is founded by a large number of workers and a few queens. It is usually protected by an envelope, like a vespine nest.
Paper inventors
Who first invented paper on Earth? The Chinese or the Egyptians… What about water resistant paper… who invented that? Don’t bother, before both of these human civilizations invent paper, humble insects such as paper wasps invented paper, that water resistant one! Whoever has been bitten by wasps would not dare to call them humble! However, their aggressive defense mechanism seems to have outshone their nest building capabilities. Paper wasps are the members of the vespid subfamily, Polistinae, which gather fiber from dead wood and plant stems, mix it with saliva and use it to construct water-resistant hexagonal shaped nests made of gray or brown papery material. Their chitin-like saliva is primarily protein with high proline content. When mixed with the cellulose, it dries quickly and irreversibly to a water insoluble, water repellant surface. So human beings wake up and invent a water resistant paper which is biodegradable as well! (www.caleidoscope.in/caleidoscope-blog/animal-inspirations-1)