Variegated paper wasp
Polistes versicolor
The variegated paper wasp is a colourful yellow wasp from South America. It builds an open paper nest that hangs from a single thin stalk. It often lives in towns and cities, sometimes right on people's houses.
Lives in
South America, especially southeastern Brazil, often in towns
What does it eat?
It hunts many kinds of insects, and it also eats pollen and nectar from flowers.
How fast is it?
A kid running fast about 13 km/h (8.1 mph)
Variegated paper wasp about 22 km/h (14 mph)
A grown-up on a bike about 25 km/h (16 mph)
A car driving in town about 50 km/h (31 mph)
cool stuff
Fun facts
1
It is the most widespread wasp species in South America.
2
Its nest is made of chewed plant fibres and has just one uncovered comb.
3
The wasps wag their bodies to send messages to each other in the nest.
4
Because it hunts pest insects and visits flowers, it can help farmers and gardeners.
5
Its name versicolor means of many colours.
you asked
Most asked questions about Variegated paper wasp
?Where does the variegated paper wasp build its nest?
On plants and often on buildings, hanging from a single thin stalk.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Polistes versicolor
- Named by
- Olivier, 1791
- Group
- Wasps and hornets
- Family
- Vespidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Hymenoptera > Vespidae
- Lives on
- South America
- Also known as
- Yellow paper wasp
Where the facts come from
- Polistes versicolor (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Antônio João. CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.
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