Bug FAQAustralian Paper Wasp
Polistes humilis · Order: Hymenoptera · Family: Eumenidae
Source: Wikipedia
Adult Australian paper wasps are 10 to 15 mm long, have yellow faces, and show a tannish-red body with black-yellow banded legs. They live in shrublands, flax swamps and forest sites across southern Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and have been introduced to New Zealand. Workers bring water, pulp, carbohydrates and protein prey back to the nest, and colonies may reuse old nests year after year.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Long thin legs with black-yellow banding help identify them.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults measure 10 to 15 mm and have yellow faces with a tannish-red coloration.
Source: Wikipedia
Is it a pest in the house?
Colonies often reuse old nests from one year to the next.
Source: Wikipedia
Does it bite or sting?
They sting painfully when their nest is disturbed, using venom for prey capture and defense.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
They are most abundant in shrublands but also occur in flax swamps and forest areas.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
They feed on water, pulp, carbohydrates and protein prey brought back by workers.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Queens mate only once; fertilized eggs become females and unfertilized eggs become males.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Some colonies overwinter by sheltering above the comb in colder months.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Native to southern Australia and introduced to New Zealand in the 1880s.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
They are generally larger than most other paper wasps.
Source: Wikipedia
More photos
Questions people ask
Do they reuse old nests?
Yes, colonies are known to reuse the same nest year after year.
Source: Wikipedia
Where are Australian paper wasps found?
They are common in shrublands, flax swamps and forests of southern Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, and have been introduced to New Zealand.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Eumenidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polistes_humilis
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.