Host Plants:
Where Found:
Worldwide except in Arctic climates
Description:
Because common wasps sting when provoked, most humans quickly learn to recognize these yellow and black striped insects. They are social insects, living in nests made out of a grey paper material that the wasps make by chewing wood into a pulp. They often build their nests under the eaves of houses or on other suitable structures.
Beneficial Because:
Wasps are voracious predators of many soft-bodied plant pests during the spring and summer months, and will feed their young protein in the form of insects gleaned from trees and gardens. All wasps kill so many smaller insects that organic gardeners should accept them whenever possible.
Food and Habitat:
They will eat various soft-bodied invertebrates during spring and summer, and turn to ripe fruits and sugary food in the autumn. Common wasps live socially in a nest that they build and maintain within a sheltered location, protected from the elements in most terrestrial habitats.
Attracting More:
Peaceful coexistence is a worthy goal with wasps. When a nest is found in a location that can be made safe from people and pets, it should be marked or fenced off and left undisturbed.
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