The vast majority of social hornets, including the common European hornet (Vespa crabro) and the bald-faced hornet (Dolichovespula maculata), are annual species that do not reuse their nests from one year to the next. These insects construct their colonies from a paper-like material made of chewed wood fibers and saliva. Their strict, single-season life cycle makes perennial use of the structure impossible, requiring every new colony to be started from scratch by a single individual each spring.
The Annual Colony Life Cycle
The hornet’s single-season life cycle prevents nest reuse. The colony begins in the spring when a single fertilized female, the foundress queen, emerges from hibernation in a sheltered location like a hollow log or under tree bark. She is the sole survivor of the previous year’s colony, as all workers, males, and the old queen perish with the onset of cold weather.
The queen works alone to build a small, initial nest and lays her first batch of eggs, which develop into sterile female workers. Once these workers emerge in late spring, they take over foraging, defense, and nest expansion. This allows the queen to focus exclusively on laying eggs, rapidly increasing the colony population throughout the summer.
As autumn approaches, the nest produces new reproductive individuals—males and new queens—which leave the nest to mate. The newly fertilized queens then seek out hibernation sites, and the original nest dies off as cold weather eliminates the remaining workers and the founding queen.
Why Nests Are Not Reused
The abandoned nest presents several disadvantages that deter a new queen from reusing it. Sanitation is a primary concern, as the old structure contains waste, dead larvae, and accumulated remnants of a season’s growth. This makes the old nest a reservoir for pathogens and parasites, so a fresh start minimizes disease transmission to the new brood.
The integrity of the paper-pulp structure also degrades significantly over the winter due to moisture and temperature fluctuations. The material becomes brittle, and the nest is not structurally sound enough to support the massive expansion required for a new season’s growth. Since the new queen begins her work alone, she requires a small, clean space for her initial brood, which a large, decaying structure cannot provide.
Where New Nests Are Built
The newly fertilized queen, or foundress, is selective when scouting for a new location in the spring. She seeks a site that offers protection from the elements, predators, and disturbances, as she is vulnerable during the initial, solitary phase of nest construction. Common locations vary by species, with European hornets often choosing protected cavities like hollow trees, attics, or wall voids.
Bald-faced hornets, by contrast, frequently build their distinctive, enclosed nests high up on tree branches or under protective overhangs like eaves of buildings. In all cases, the queen gathers new construction materials by chewing wood fibers from weathered sources and mixing them with her saliva. This ensures the new nest is built to her exact specifications and located in the most advantageous, secure spot for the season.