Paper Wasp

Polistes exclamans

Appears: The paper wasp will be active in the summer months and remain so into fall in their search for nectar.

Beneficial: Adult paper wasps feed on nectar, liking goldenrod in the fall. The paper wasp also attacks caterpillars. chewed up by the worker wasps and fed to the larvae. Some of the butterfly and moth caterpillars identified as their food include the cabbage white butterfly, clouded sulphur butterfly, silver spotted skippers, tiger moths, and the sphinx moths, all of which are active in the garden. Because they eat these caterpillar pests, many feel it to be beneficial to have the paper wasp around. They build their nests from wood fibers collected from posts and plant stems causing some

Size: 19 mm