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Fun Facts
Did You Know?
The paper wasp nest under the eave generates anxiety out of proportion to the actual risk it poses. A nest in a location where people regularly pass close to it warrants management. A nest in a location where people do not regularly pass close to it warrants nothing except periodic observation
If This Animal Could Talk...
"Watch closely, respect my space, and let my habitat explain the rest of the story."
Polistes annularis is one of four Polistes paper wasp species in North Louisiana's 26 parishes. It's the largest of the four, and the one you'll most consistently find underneath bridges over North Louisiana bayous and creeks.
Paper wasps as a group rank among the most studied colonial insects in North America, partly because their open-comb architecture makes behavioral observation easier than in enclosed-nest species, and partly because the genus Polistes generated decades of research on why some wasps live in colonies rather than nesting alone.
A Few More Facts
How they hunt and forage: Workers hunt caterpillars from plant surfaces in the foraging range around the nest, chew them to protein paste, and feed the paste to larvae in the open cells. Adult workers feed on nectar and honeydew. The protein-to-carbohydrate balance of worker foraging shifts across the season, but caterpillar hunting is the primary colony protein source throughout. The caterpillar species taken by Polistes annularis workers reflect the caterpillar community available in aquatic and semi-aquatic habitats near water throughout North Louisiana. Workers hunt opportunistically within their prey size range, taking whatever caterpillar species are available on foliage within flight range. The same colony may provision cells with tobacco hornworm larvae from the garden and geometrid larvae from adjacent woodland on the same day.
Live birth or eggs? no
When young are born: Queens emerge in late February or March, worker population peaks in August, and the colony ends with the first sustained cold, typically November in North Louisiana.The Ringed Paper Wasp at North Louisiana's Water CrossingsEvery bridge over a North Louisiana bayou, creek, or drainage canal with a protected concrete or metal underside is potential ringed paper wasp habitat.
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Accessibility
Accessibility
Ringed paper wasp colonies under bridges produce colony sound amplified by the enclosed space beneath the deck, papery comb rustling and forager wing-buzz carrying upward through bridge structures in still conditions. Standing at a bridge rail over a North Louisiana bayou in summer, the colony sound from below is often the first evidence a nest is present, audible before the nest is visible from the water side.
Bridges over North Louisiana creeks and bayous put this species in observation range from maintained road surfaces throughout the bottomland and transitional parishes, no off-road navigation required.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Does Ringed Paper Wasp live in North Louisiana?
Yes. Polistes annularis is one of four Polistes paper wasp species in North Louisiana's 26 parishes. It's the largest of the four, and the one you'll most consistently find underneath bridges over North Louisiana bayous and creeks. The nest on the structure near you right now, if you are in the right habitat in North Louisiana, may be Polistes annularis
How do you identify Ringed Paper Wasp?
The ringed paper wasp is the largest of North Louisiana's four Polistes species and the one associated most strongly with aquatic habitat. Body length reaches nearly an inch in large females, noticeably larger than the other three species. The color pattern is black with prominent red and yellow banding, with the banding more clearly defined and more evenly distributed across the abdomen than in the other Polistes species. The combination of large size and clear banding makes the ringed paper wasp visually distinctive at moderate distances. That head and thorax are black with limited yellow markings. The abdomen shows alternating black, red, and yellow bands. The legs are long with yellow banding. The overall impression is a large, well-marked paper wasp, the one that looks the most like the mental image of a paper wasp from a natural history field guide.
What does Ringed Paper Wasp eat?
Workers hunt caterpillars from plant surfaces in the foraging range around the nest, chew them to protein paste, and feed the paste to larvae in the open cells. Adult workers feed on nectar and honeydew. The protein-to-carbohydrate balance of worker foraging shifts across the season, but caterpillar hunting is the primary colony protein source throughout
Is Ringed Paper Wasp dangerous to people?
The Sting
All female Ringed Paper Wasp workers sting. The sting occurs in defense of the nest when the nest is disturbed, or in defense of the individual when the individual is grabbed, trapped, or struck. The colony defense response at the nest involves wing buzzing and raised-abdomen posture before stinging; workers at the nest do not typically sting without this warning display. Workers away from the nest on foraging trips are much less likely to sting than workers at the nest.
The sting of Polistes species is comparable in pain to a honeybee sting in most assessments, moderate, immediately painful, fading over fifteen to thirty minutes in most individuals without systemic reaction. Allergic reactions to Polistes venom do occur and require medical management.
That ringed paper wasp's large size and clear banding distinguish it from the other three North Louisiana Polistes species. The fine-backed paper wasp and metric paper wasp are smaller with less defined banding. The red paper wasp lacks the prominent black component.
Water association is the other key identifier: a large, boldly marked paper wasp nest under a bridge over a North Louisiana bayou or creek is almost certainly the ringed paper wasp. The same nest on a residential porch away from water is more likely one of the other three species.
