Paper Wasps | Social Structure Without a Queen

FROM EAST TO WEST

In 2023, while walking in Babanango, KwaZulu-Natal, we came across a small Paper Wasp nest that caught our attention long enough to turn a brief moment into a deeper observation. That encounter later became a blog post exploring the social lives of these insects.

Now, here in the Waterberg at Welgevonden Game reserve, the same species has appeared again. Polistes fastidiotus. Years later, hundreds of kilometres away. A completely different ecosystem. This time hidden under the shelter of a roof.

This second encounter sparked renewed curiosity for several reasons. Did you see the large flower chafer beetle sitting directly on the nest? She is basically impossible to overlook. The situation raised questions immediately, and we began tracing possible answers.

There is little scientific research focusing on this species, Polistes fastidiotus. However, Paper Wasps belong to a very species-rich genus that has been studied extensively. Closely related Polistes species show remarkably similar social and behavioural patterns, allowing us to cautiously transfer some of these insights to the Paper Wasps we encountered here.

Unlike honeybees, Paper Wasps do not live under the rule of a fixed, morphologically different queen. Instead, their colonies are organised around a dominant reproductive female, a role defined by behaviour and not her anatomy. But this dominance is not permanent.

Above pictures: Koenraad handheld images taken in Waterberg of South Africa, of Protea caffra "aka Sugarbush" with various phases of the flowers' life.Top to bottom, flower opening, and eventually final image of flower after opening due to "wild" fire combustion for seed dispersal.

GENERATIONS OF DOMINANCE

One female starts the colony. She builds the nest and lays the first eggs. From these eggs, sisters emerge. These sisters, often referred to as workers, take over the care of the eggs and larvae, forage for food and maintain the nest. In the picture below you can clearly see a worker feeding on of the larva.

The larvae are supplied with chewed-up insects, mostly protein. Interestingly, the larvae return the favour. Their metabolic by-products consist of sugary, enzyme-rich secretions, which are then consumed by the adult Paper Wasp. So even before they hatch, there is already a close physiological and social connection between larvae and adults.

Only the dominant female lays eggs. At least that is what we thought so far. Recent research suggests that there can be more than one dominant female within a colony. Dominance hierarchies appear to be more dynamic than previously assumed. Workers can rise to become dominant, but they may also lose this status and return to a subordinate role. The role of the dominant female is not fixed, but flexible and continuously renegotiated.

That is also the point at which genetic variation begins to increase within the colony. With time, the high level of relatedness fades. As dominant females are replaced and generations overlap, colonies become genetically more diverse.

But despite relatedness decreasing, the colony still functions as a cooperative unit. But why? In evolutionary terms, this is explained by kin selection. Success is not measured by individual reproduction and survival, but by the survival of shared genes.

But how do these Paper Wasps actually know who is who?

FACIAL RECOGNITION

Paper Wasps are able to recognise faces. Nearly unimaginable that an insect this small is able to recognise the facial complexity of hundreds of different members of the same species. Research shows that this ability evolved in species with complex social interactions and dominance hierarchies. Being able to recognise nestmates reduces unnecessary aggression and helps stabilise the social structure within the colony. It is remarkable to think that such small insects rely on individual recognition to maintain social order.

In the Waterberg nest, multiple stages of development were visible at the same time. Eggs, larvae, pupae and adult Paper Wasps shared the same structure, revealing a continuous cycle of care rather than synchronised breeding. Adult Paper Wasps moved steadily between the surrounding vegetation and the nest, some returning with food held firmly in their mandibles, clear evidence of ongoing larval care.

Now, let’s take a look at that Black Flower Chafer beetle (Diplognatha gagates)

The most pressing questions in this regard: why is the Paper Wasps not attacking the beetle, and what is she doing there?

To answer these questions, other factors have to be taken into consideration. While taking the picture, it was a cold, cloudy and rainy day. This poor cold-blooded (ectothermic) beetle was purely seeking the warmth of the nest. Somehow, the Paper Wasps realised that there was no further threat coming from it, and they tolerated its presence.

This behaviour shows that these social insects are often wrongly portrayed as relentlessly defensive and aggressive. Moments like these reveal a far more nuanced decision-making process.

Encountering the same Paper Wasps again, first in KwaZulu-Natal and now in the Waterberg, highlights how successful ecological strategies spread over space. Their colonies offer insight into cooperation without rigid roles, hierarchy without permanence, and success built on flexibility.

REFERENCES

Centola, D. (2011). An experimental study of homophily in the adoption of health behavior. Science, 334(6060), 1269–1272. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1207055

Jandt, J. M., Tibbetts, E. A., Toth, A. L., & International Union for the Study of Social Insects (IUSSI). (2013). Polistes paper wasps: a model genus for the study of social dominance hierarchies. In Insectes Sociaux (Vols. 61–27) [Journal-article]. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00040-013-0328-0

Jernigan, C. M., Mammen, L. C. C., Brown, R. D., & Sheehan, M. J. (2024). Paper wasps: A model clade for social cognition. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 89, 102928. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conb.2024.102928

Santos, B. F., Payne, A., Pickett, K. M., & Carpenter, J. M. (2014). Phylogeny and historical biogeography of the paper wasp genusPolistes(Hymenoptera: Vespidae): implications for the overwintering hypothesis of social evolution. Cladistics, 31(5), 535–549. https://doi.org/10.1111/cla.12103

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