The Hornet Vespa crabro is Britain's largest social wasp. The queen starts to build her nest in the spring, with workers becoming active by June, at which time the queen spends her time in the nest egg laying and tending her brood. By August the colony will be large and very active. Guard workers will "see off" anyone who approach close to the nest, but they seldom sting without provocation.

 

All pictures are Copyright of Richard Revels FRPS

 

A close up of a male Hornet. The males have longer antenna than worker and queen hornets, and cannot sting.

 

A queen Hornet tending her brood in a nest box in early May. At this stage she does everything from nest building to feeding the grubs. Two of the brood have pupated and within a week or so she will have help of these worker hornets. In the freshly made cells new eggs can be seen.

Worker Hornets building their nest. This is a different nest, this being in a bird hide @ the RSPB reserve Fowlmere, Cambs.  Early June.

A Hornet chewing old wood to obtain pulp for nest building.

A worker Hornet flying to its nest entrance with wood pulp for nest building.

A worker Hornet nest builder. June.

During early winter after the nest had been abandoned, the nest in the bird hide at the RSPB reserve @ Fowlmere was cut open, revealing the structure of the nest.