Polistes badius

Polistes badius · Order: Hymenoptera · Family: Eumenidae

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Polistes badius
Photo: i_c_riddell, CC BY

Polistes badius is a social paper wasp about 13 mm long (0.5 in). The species lives in Africa and Yemen, feeds on caterpillars and other soft-bodied insects, and builds horizontal nests with downward-facing cells.

Source: Wikipedia

Size

The type specimen measured about 13 mm (0.51 in) in length.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it lives

Polistes badius builds horizontal nests whose cells face downward.

Source: Wikipedia

What it eats

It feeds mainly on caterpillars and other soft-bodied insects.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it comes from

It is a social paper wasp native to Africa and Yemen.

Source: Wikipedia

Questions people ask

How big is Polistes badius?

The type specimen is about 13 mm (0.5 in) long.

Source: Wikipedia

Where is Polistes badius found?

It is native to Africa and Yemen.

Source: Wikipedia

What does Polistes badius eat?

It primarily hunts caterpillars and other soft-bodied insects.

Source: Wikipedia

Same family (Eumenidae)

Sources

  • Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polistes_badius

Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia

Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-23.

How this page works

This is one bug's fact sheet. The colored box at the top says whether it is dangerous. Sections below cover how to recognize it, whether it is a pest, and how to deal with it. The US map shows which states have records; tap a state to see other bugs there.

Every fact on Bug FAQ comes from a named source (university extension sites, government agencies, GBIF, iNaturalist, Wikipedia). The source is linked next to each section. If we have no source for something, we leave it out.