Wasp life: the social wasp [series]

Title

Language

English

Source

The Young Citizen. 3 (4) May 1937

Year

1937

Subject

Wasps

Wasp behavior

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

124 THE YOUNG CITIZEN May, 1937 WASP LIFE The Social Wasp We always think of a wasp as a vindictive insect, ready to sting anyone who comes near it. We often des<ribe pzople who arc easily angered as possessing a waspi<>h temper. But the wasp stings only in self-dcfen:;c or in protection of its cdony or when angered by interference. When we come to study wasps, as well as other animals that we fear unreasonably, we find that a knowledge of their ways and life destroys our fear of them. We can easily distinguish a wasp from a bee by the folding of the fore wings kngthwisc when I he insect is in repose. Another characteristic of the wasp is the peculiar form of the first segment of thz thorax: it is narrow and on either side curves back round the second segment forming an angle which reposes on a scale at the base of the wings. Let us follow the history of the common social wasp. A single queen that has survived from last year's colony is the founder of the new one. The foundress of the colony is awakened from her long sleep by the warmth of an early ,\pril sun. She brushes off the dust ory. her wings and works as one in a hurry. First she frcds herself as briefly as possible and then goes .oul in careful search of a nesting place. This must be where there should be sufficient tl!mrr rature and enough privacy. The first step in forming the coming colony is a bit of real hard work. The queen, without • 1ny help whatever. dislodges earth and shapes the hole. carrying oul all the earth not needed in her mouth After the hole has been prepared and clean~d. the anxious queen Hies to other exposed surfaces of wood. She alights . llld scrapes the surface, fraying it. and detaching fibreS which she chews and mixes with some stick stuff which flows from her mouth. The product is a pellet of moist wooc;i-pulp which is cc:rried into the burrow and fixed to a ·firm object in the roof. More pellets are added and all are worked into a hanging stalk from which the nest proper will be eventually suspended. The pulp is attached to the free ·end of the hanging stalk and worked into the form of a thin inverted saucer of paper, about half an inch in diameter. Beneath this roof a tiny platform. <dso of paper, is made and to it the wasp attaches a few shallow cup-shaped cells that hang mouth clown wards. In each of these first-made cells an egg is laid. As the cell hangs with mouth open downwards, each egg has to be fixed to the base of its cell. After this arrangement, the queen proceeds to add more cells and increase the area of the roof. The first three or four eggs hatch in about eight days and now the queen has to forage for food and feed the grubs from her own mouth. The tiny grub, in order not to foll from its cell. keeps its posterior end tucked inside the egg-shell and u:;cs it as an ,1nchor.Jge. After about fourteen days of hearty feeding, the grubs spin cocoons and pupate. In ten more days the perfect insects emerge. The queen now has a few cmistants. (To be continued l STUDY TEST ON WASP LIFE Choose the best answer: I. Wasps sting people for (revenge, self-de· fense, food. fear) . 2. A wasp may be distinguished from a bee by (ils head, its life-history, the folding of its wings, its food) . 1. A wasp colony is founded by a lmak. a worker. a soldier, a queen). 4. The nest of the wasp is. made of (leaves . earth. wood-pulp. wax and pollen). 5. The queen w1sp is (industrious. lazy. helpless, thoughtful) .

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