[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row column_structure=”1_2,1_2″ admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”4.16″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” width=”100%” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text admin_label=”squiggle-left” _builder_version=”4.24.1″ _module_preset=”default” header_font=”||||||||” header_text_align=”left” header_font_size=”22px” width=”75%” module_alignment=”left” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_module=”23371″ saved_tabs=”all” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
\t\t
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” header_font_size=”36px” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Vespidae<\/p>\n
The European paper wasp is a generally black insect marked with yellow. They are\u00a0fairly\u00a0slender\u00a0bodied\u00a0with a distinct constriction of the body between the thorax and abdomen.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>European paper wasps are sometimes mistaken for yellowjackets or hornets. Yellowjackets are the most significant stinging insects in this region, and have <\/span>a somewhat blunter and more compact bodied. <\/span>Paper wasps\u00a0have\u00a0long hind legs that trail below the insect while in flight, unlike the yellow jacket<\/span><\/p>\n This wasp was common in Europe and was first found in North America in the 1970s in the Boston area. The first record for the species in Colorado\u00a0was\u00a0August,\u00a02001 from Larimer County. Wherever it has\u00a0been established, the European paper wasp has usually become a common species within a few years. European paper wasp is now considered very abundant in every urbanized county in eastern Colorado and three western Colorado counties of\u00a0Mesa, Montrose, and\u00a0Delta. Presently, it is not known to occur in\u00a0many\u00a0of the higher elevation counties, aside from\u00a0Steamboat\u00a0Springs.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_blurb title=”Quick Facts” use_icon=”on” font_icon=”||fa||900″ icon_color=”#F15625″ image_icon_width=”36px” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” header_level=”h3″ header_font=”|||on|||||” header_text_align=”center” header_font_size=”26px” background_color=”#FEBD3B” custom_margin=”|4%||4%|false|true” custom_padding=”4%|4%|4%|4%|true|true” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_blurb][et_pb_blurb image=”https:\/\/agsci.colostate.edu\/divi-agbio\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/127\/2022\/03\/wasp-nest-with-larva-inside-1-scaled-1.jpeg” alt=”A wasp nest with larva inside.” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” body_line_height=”1.4em” image_icon_custom_margin=”||-22px||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n A wasp nest with larva inside. Image credit:<\/em> Joseph Berger, Bugwood.org<\/i><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_blurb][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_blurb image=”https:\/\/agsci.colostate.edu\/divi-agbio\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/127\/2022\/03\/wasps-visiting-a-hummingbird-feeder-1-scaled-1.jpeg” alt=”A group of wasps at a hummingbird feeder.” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” body_line_height=”1.4em” image_icon_custom_margin=”||-22px||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n A group of wasps at a hummingbird feeder. Image credit: Whitney Cranshaw, Colorado State University, Bugwood.org<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_blurb][et_pb_blurb image=”https:\/\/agsci.colostate.edu\/divi-agbio\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/127\/2022\/03\/Male-wasp-on-wood-1-scaled-1.jpeg” alt=”A male wasp on wood.” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” body_line_height=”1.4em” image_icon_custom_margin=”||-22px||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Male wasp on wood. Image credit: Whitney Cranshaw, Colorado State University, Bugwood.org<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_blurb][et_pb_blurb image=”https:\/\/agsci.colostate.edu\/divi-agbio\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/127\/2022\/03\/wasps-nesting-in-pipe-1-scaled-1.jpeg” alt=”Wasps nesting in a pipe.” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” body_line_height=”1.4em” image_icon_custom_margin=”||-22px||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n European paper wasps nesting inside a metal pipe used for clothes line. Image credit: Whitney Cranshaw, Colorado State University, Bugwood.org<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_blurb][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_color=”#F1F1F1″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.24.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n\t\t European paper wasps are social\u00a0insects\u00a0that\u00a0produce\u00a0an annual colony in a paper nest. New individual colonies are established each spring.\u00a0<\/span>The overwintering stage are females, which survive in protected sites around a yard. Occasionally these wasps will find shelter indoors, however, a winter encounter does not indicate the presence of an active colony\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The females will re-emerge in spring, with the earliest activity seen in the first half of March and seek to establish new nests, <\/span>constructed from paper and chewed wood fibers of weathered fences, porch decks, and similar sites. <\/span>The nest is continuously expanded and reconstructed throughout the summer and may contain several dozen individuals by the end of summer. <\/span>Nests are almost always established in new locations each year. Favored sites include dark <\/span>cavities, including those in outdoor grills, large bells, pipes, rock cavities and hollow spaces behind walls, and w<\/span>ood on the underside of porch decks, eaves, or other overhangs.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” background_color=”#FFFFFF” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.24.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n\t\t European paper wasps are relatively non-aggressive and are generally <\/span>less likely to sting than most yellowjackets and bumble bees. <\/span>Stings occur almost exclusively when nests are accidentally disturbed. <\/span>European paper wasps rear their young on live insects and do not produce nuisance problems around outdoor dining characteristic of scavenging species like the western yellowjacket.<\/span><\/p>\n On rare occasions they may feed on sweet materials and sometimes damage ripe fruit. Particularly notable on cherries and well-ripened stone fruits on the Western Slope. It is worth mentioning that the <\/span>European paper wasp as a natural enemy of h<\/span>ornworm larvae, c<\/span>abbageworm, tent caterpillars, and sawfly larvae.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_color=”#F1F1F1″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.24.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n\t\t It is best to leave nests alone until they are abandoned at the end of the season, when it will be safe to remove them. Insecticides marketed for \u201cwasp and hornets\u201d can be used to destroy individual nests. If treated, it is recommended to apply in the evening, as\u00a0<\/span>most of<\/span> the wasps have returned to the nest. Once the nest is removed it is recommended to wash the area with a jet of water to eliminate any odors. There are no traps or lures that can be used to control this species. Commercially available wasp traps are designed to attract certain kinds of yellowjackets and contain baits that are not attractive to European paper wasp.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” background_color=”#FFFFFF” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_blurb title=”CSU Extension Fact Sheet” url=”https:\/\/extension.colostate.edu\/docs\/pubs\/insect\/05611.pdf” use_icon=”on” font_icon=”||fa||900″ icon_color=”#F15625″ image_icon_width=”36px” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” header_level=”h2″ header_font_size=”36px” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Download or view the CSU Extension’s PDF fact sheet for your reference.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_blurb][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.24.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n\t\t Hodgson, E. and A. Roe. 2007.<\/strong> Yellowjackets, hornets and paper wasps. Utah State University-Extension. Available https:\/\/digitalcommons.usu.edu\/cgi\/viewcontent.cgi?article=1992&context=extension_curall<\/a><\/p>\n\n
\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Life history and habits<\/h2>\n
\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Damage<\/h2>\n
\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Management<\/h2>\n
\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Additional reading<\/h2>\n