Vespula germanica
| Vespula germanica (German Wasp) | |
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| A German wasp | |
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| Species: | V. germanica
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| Vespula germanica (Fabricius, 1793)
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| Distribution of the German wasp: native distribution in blue, introduced in red | |
The German wasp, or European wasp, or German yellow jacket, Vespula germanica, is a wasp found in much of the Northern Hemisphere, native to Europe, northern Africa, and temperate Asia. It has been introduced and is well-established in many other places, including North America, South America (Argentina and Chile), Australia and New Zealand. German wasps are part of the family Vespidae and are sometimes mistakenly referred to as paper wasps because they build grey paper nests, although strictly speaking, paper wasps are part of the subfamily Polistinae. In North America, they are also known as yellowjackets.
Identification
The German wasp is about 13mm (0.5 inch) long, has a mass of 74.1±9.6 mg,[1] and has typical wasp colours of black and yellow. It is very similar to the common wasp (Vespula vulgaris), but seen head on, its face has three tiny black dots. German wasps also have black dots on their abdomen, while the common wasp's analogous markings are fused with the black rings above them, forming a different pattern.
Nests
The nest is made from chewed plant fibres, mixed with saliva. It is generally found close to or in the ground, rather than higher up on bushes and trees like hornets. It has open cells and a petiole attaching the nest to the substrate. The wasps produce a chemical which repels ants, and secrete it around the base of this petiole to avoid ant predation.
A solitary female queen starts the nest, building 20–30 cells before initial egg-laying. This phase begins in spring, depending on climatic conditions. She fashions a petiole and produces a single cell at the end of it. Six further cells are then added around this to produce the characteristic hexagonal shape of the nest cells.
Once the larvae have hatched as workers, they take up most of the colony’s foraging, brood care and nest maintenance. A finished nest may be 20–30 cm across and contain 3,000 individuals.
Each wasp colony includes one queen and a number of sterile workers. Colonies usually last only one year, all but the queen dying at the onset of winter. However, in mild climates such as New Zealand, around 10% of the colonies survive the winter. New queens and males (drones) are produced towards the end of the summer, and after mating, the queen overwinters in a crack or other sheltered location.
This common and widespread wasp collects insects, including caterpillars, to feed to its larvae, and is therefore generally beneficial. The adults feed on nectar and sweet fruit, and are also attracted to human food and food waste, particularly sugary drinks and meats.
The nests are subject to predation by the honey buzzard, which excavates them to obtain the larvae. The hoverfly Volucella pellucens and some of its relatives lay their eggs in the wasp's nest, and the larvae feed on the wasp's young.
Pest status
This species is considered a pest in most areas outside its native range, though its long residency in North America is such that it is not treated with any level of urgency there, in contrast to areas such as South America, where the introduction is more recent, and the impacts far more dramatic, prompting a greater degree of concern over control measures (e.g.[2]).
Along with the closely related common wasp and two species of Polistes, the German wasp is considered to be a pest in New Zealand. It was probably introduced in the late 19th century, but did not appear in large numbers until around 1940.[3] Wasp numbers reach their greatest densities in beech forest of the South Island, due to the abundance of honeydew produced by the beech scale insect in this type of forest. It has a serious effect on the forest ecology, since less honeydew is available for the native birds. German wasps were however quickly succeeded in much of the South Island and its beech forests by the introduction of the common wasp in the 1970s.[4][5]
In domestic situations, nests have been known to become very large, sometimes taking up entire attic spaces in houses. This is ascribed to the comparatively mild winters experienced in New Zealand, as opposed to the wasp's usual European habitat.
The European wasp is also considered a pest in Australia.[6]
An unusual attempt at wasp control is related from Abercairney in Scotland, where until the 1950s, children were encouraged to compete in the Wasp Cup, awarded to the competitor who handed in the most queen wasps. The wasps were stuck to card and a payment of 1d was made for each; totals of 40 were not uncommon.[7]
References
- ^ "Does size matter? — Thermoregulation of 'heavyweight' and 'lightweight' wasps". Retrieved 16 May 2013.
- ^ Successful Removal of German Yellow Jackets by Toxic Baiting
- ^ Pest Animal Control Bay of Plenty environment report. Retrieved 7 January 2007
- ^ R. J. Harris, C. D. Thomas & H. Moller (1991). "The influence of habitat use and foraging on the replacement of one introduced wasp species by another in New Zealand". Ecological Entomology. 16 (4): 441–448. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2311.1991.tb00237.x.
- ^ "Vespula Wasp Factsheet" (PDF). Department of Conservation. Retrieved 2012-05-19.
- ^ Museum Victoria > European Wasps in Australia Accessed 30 January 2013
- ^ Holder, Geoff (2007). The Guide to Mysterious Perthshire. Stroud : Tempus. ISBN 978-0-7524-4140-5. p. 149.
External links
- Yellowjacket fact sheet at Ohio State University
- Differences between Yellowjackets and Hornets
- Photographs of Yellowjackets (and other insects) in flight
- Yellowjackets - Center for Invasive Species Research