<Ant> <Bed Bug> <Carpet Beetle> <Cockroach> <Flea> <Fly>
<Mouse> <Mole> <Moth> <Pigeon> <Rat> <Squirrel> <Wasp>
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<Wasp>Creature feature
Common Wasp - (Vespula vulgaris)
German Wasp - (Vespula germanica)
Adult workers, winged 10-20mm long, distinctive back and yellow. Queen winged, similar colouration but larger. Life cycle Egg - larva - pupa - adult

Life Style
A fertilised queen wasp emerges from hibernation around mid April and searches for a suitable site to start her colony such as a roof space or tree cavity. The nest is constructed from chewed bark and dried timber mixed with saliva. The queen initially lays 10-20 eggs. This first batch hatches into worker (sterile females). These then feed and protect subsequent eggs laid by the queen. By late summer a nest will contain 3000 to 5000 wasps. During late summer males and new young queens will emerge and mate. The female selects a suitable site to spend the winter ready to start a new colony in the spring.

Pest Factor
Wasps are attracted to waste sites and animal bodies so can be responsible for the spread of disease. They can also inflict painful stings which, on rare occasions, can cause life threatening allergic reactions.

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For further information or assistance contact:
Cambridge Environmental Services
Cambridge 01223 570250
Bishop's Stortford 01279 503407
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