Paper wasps, belonging to the genus Polistes, are social insects found across much of the world. They build their characteristic umbrella-shaped nests from a papery material created by mixing wood fibers and saliva. Their life cycle is annual, meaning the majority of the colony dies off each year when cold weather arrives. While the general answer to “Do paper wasps die in the winter?” is “yes,” the species’ survival is ensured by a select group of fertilized females, the future queens, who are built to withstand the cold.
The Structure of the Active Paper Wasp Colony
The paper wasp colony thrives during the warm months, operating as a small society with distinct castes and roles. A single founding female initiates the nest in the spring, becoming the queen who lays all the eggs. The first generation of offspring are sterile female workers, which take over the duties of nest construction, foraging for food, and caring for the young.
These workers feed the developing larvae on a diet consisting primarily of chewed-up insects, such as caterpillars, while the adults sustain themselves on plant nectar and other sugary liquids. The colony’s population grows steadily throughout the summer, reaching a maximum size often between 20 and 30 adults, although some colonies can be larger. This intense level of activity and high metabolic demand is sustained only by the abundance of food and the warm temperatures of the season.
The Collapse of the Colony and the Fate of Workers
As the days shorten and autumn approaches, a profound shift occurs within the paper wasp colony that signals the end of the reproductive season. The founding queen stops laying eggs, and the colony begins to rear a final, specialized brood that includes males and new, reproductive females, known as gynes. These gynes are the only members of the colony who will mate and survive the winter.
The males and the existing worker wasps are not physiologically equipped to endure the cold temperatures. Their bodies lack the internal mechanisms necessary for deep, protective dormancy, and they soon cease foraging and nest-maintenance activities. Consequently, the colony structure dissolves as the workers and males die off due to cold exposure and resource depletion. The paper nest itself is abandoned, as it is not designed for long-term survival or reuse.
Survival Strategy of the Fertilized Queen
Survival into the next year is reserved only for the newly emerged gynes, the females who have successfully mated with the males produced in late summer. These fertilized females undergo a dramatic physiological transformation, preparing their bodies for an extended period of dormancy called diapause. Diapause involves a drastic suppression of their metabolic rate, which allows them to subsist on stored fat reserves for months without feeding.
Before the first hard frost, their internal clock prompts them to seek out a sheltered overwintering site, often called a hibernaculum. These locations are protected from the elements, such as crevices in structures, under the bark of dead trees, or within the voids of buildings like attics and wall spaces. Finding a spot that offers protection from predators and severe weather allows their slowed metabolism to conserve energy until spring.
Spring Emergence and the Beginning of the New Cycle
The long period of diapause ends when the overwintering females sense the return of consistently warmer temperatures, often around 50 degrees Fahrenheit. The rising warmth triggers their emergence from their sheltered spots, and they fly out to begin the process of establishing a new colony. Each surviving fertilized female, now a potential founding queen, will search for a suitable, sheltered location to build her own nest.
The queen must work alone, collecting wood fibers, chewing them into paper pulp, and constructing a small nest of a few cells. She then lays her first clutch of eggs and must single-handedly forage for food and defend the nascent colony. This initial period is challenging and vulnerable for the queen, as she performs all tasks until the first generation of worker daughters emerges. Once the workers take over the labor, the queen can focus exclusively on egg laying.