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Large skin wing family with more than 3,000 different species. In viniculture, the European wasp (Paravespula germanica) and the common wasp (Paravespula vulgaris), as well as occasionally the red wasp (Paravespula rufa) and the hornet (Vespa crabro) occur in Central Europe. They hibernate as single, mated females. In spring, they chew weathered wood and use it to build honeycombs into which eggs are laid.
The wasps hatching after several larval moultings (mostly workers) prick the grapes and eat the contents, leaving only the berry skin (see in the picture). bees (who can only take in liquid food) are the beneficiaries of berries stung by the wasps. In contrast to the wasps, they cannot bite the berry skin of the grapes, but can only press them on with fine hairline cracks, where they then absorb the escaping sweet juice. The grapes from mushrooms or bacteria infest what to vinegar and green rot can lead. Wasps are controlled by traps (narrow-necked bottles with bait = beer and berry juice). In contrast, the insect species gall wasps and parasitic wasps are beneficials in viticulture. See also under Vine enemies,
Images by bernswaelz from Pixabay
