Stats

Lifespan: Up to 1 yr
Size: Medium
Diet: Omnivore
Activity: Diurnal
Social: Colony
Biome: Temperate grassland
Range: Europe
Movement: Flight
Breeding: Egg-laying
Defense: Venom
Status: Common

About

A social wasp that builds open-celled nests from chewed wood fibres — the hexagonal cells are visible from below. Remarkably, it can recognise the individual faces of nestmates, one of only a handful of insects known to do so.

Life cycle

1.
egg
A small egg is laid on or near the larval food source and hatches within days or weeks.
2.
juvenile
An immature insect feeds and molts, growing through successive instars.
3.
subadult
A near-adult insect has wing buds or near-mature form, one molt away from full size.
4.
adult
Fully grown, with full wings and adult coloration.

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Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Vespidae
Genus: Polistes
Species: Polistes dominula