Natural Architecture
by Debbie Oppermann
Title
Natural Architecture
Artist
Debbie Oppermann
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
"Natural Architecture" by Debbie Oppermann. The Wasp nest is a fascinating piece of engineering constructed from wood which the wasps strip from fence panels and garden sheds etc. The queen wasp starts building the nest from scratch in the spring after she emerges from winter hibernation. Wasp nests grow at varying rates depending on food and availability of nest material. Wasps strip untreated dead wood from fence panels or garden furniture and sheds which is converted into a paste that the wasps use to construct their nest. So, the workers take this material back to the nest and hand it over to young wasp larvae which turn this chewed wood into a paste which the adult workers then use to continue expanding the nest. The paste which is used to construct the nest contains a certain amount of wax which helps with waterproofing. In the middle of summer it is very hard to see the nest with the trees in full leaf but in the autumn this amazing construction can be seen as the leaves fall to the ground. We not only had a very large wasp nest in our Maple tree in the backyard but I also spotted this one at the arboretum in Guelph Ontario Canada.
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November 25th, 2017
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