Do Wasps Hibernate?

Do things seem suddenly quiet in the pest world? After spending the spring, summer, and fall exploring the outdoors, it might feel like pests suddenly disappeared. Ants are no longer trying to sneak into your home and you don’t need to worry about a mosquito feasting on you anymore. What about wasps? Have you noticed they aren’t buzzing around and bugging you anymore? What are they doing in the winter? Learn if wasps hibernate.

Do Wasps Hibernate?

In the fall, most wasps die, with the exception of very important members of society: the queens! Queen wasps hibernate because it is their job to revive the hive with a new generation the following year. To prepare for hibernation, she stocks up on nectar to have subsistence to survive. Once the weather warms again, she emerges from hibernation and begins building a new nest. (She will not return to the nest from last year.) She lays eggs that hatch into the female workers who finish building the nest and collect food for the growing hive.

In the summertime, the males and fertile females hatch and mate. Those fertile females will be the new queens to survive the winter. The old queens, worker females, and males all die in the fall, beginning the cycle again.

Wasp Problem? ExtermPRO Is Here to Help.

Did you know stinging insects send approximately 500,000 people to the emergency room every year? The wasps might not be awake now, but you don’t want to wait until the queens of the hives have a chance to start anew in the springtime. Your local pest professionals at ExtermPRO are experts at taking back your yard and deck with wasp, hornet, and bee control services. Call us today at 571-620-1168 for a free evaluation by one of our trained bee, wasp, and hornet control experts.