Wasps are frequent guests on picnics, as they hear the smell of food they love the most – the one that has sugar. They sense the sugary food and take it to their nest to feed the larvae. Even though the pieces of food they take can not be clean, the wasps are still considered clean insects.
People can see wasps around trash and assume that they are dirty, like flies. It’s not the truth. Wasps are not like flies that breed in rotten food and dead animals.
Wasps are considered clean due to their diet and grooming habits. Even though wasps can sometimes be found around trash, they don’t eat rotten foods. They clean themselves to avoid diseases and are safe insects. You can still eat the food, on which wasp landed a few minutes ago. But make sure you don’t eat the wasp.
Among different species, the diet may vary. However, it stays approximately similar. Some wasps, for example, yellow jackets, can eat dead insects and animals, as they like meat. But still, they don’t eat rotten food.
Why do wasps clean themselves?
Wasps have vivid cleaning habits. They are likely to clean their body parts using the front legs. They usually can be seen cleaning their bodies after contact with other substances, like food, for example. Also, wasps can use grooming as a way to clean from debris.
Cleaning means protecting the colony.
Social wasps do everything to protect their colony and nest. This means they need to clean the nest and take care of it, so larvae can safely develop. They clean themselves as well to avoid any diseases spreading in the colony. So staying free of infections individually helps to save the whole state.
Do Wasps eat rotten food or dead animals?
People may assume that wasps also eat rotten food like flies do because sometimes wasps can be found around garbage. However, it’s not the truth. Wasps can eat dead insects, as they are carnivorous predators. The famous representative of insects that eat decaying animals and rotten food is the adult fly.
Wasps like (clean) meat.
Animals and insects that eat dead flesh are commonly called scavengers. This behavior is more common among vertebrate species; however, it can also be found among insects, such as flesh flies, blowflies, harvester ants. Yellow jackets are usually the ones from the wasp group that eat dead animals. They also like different types of meat.
The wasp diet includes nectar, honey, fruit, sweet drinks, small insects, spiders. Some wasps can even chew the wood pulp to make their nests.
Do Wasps poo or pee?
Wasps have an active metabolism and a digestive tract that they use to convert nutrients into energy and waste. These unusable by-products are disposed of as a pulpy yellowish substance from a cesspool in the abdomen.
You might be interested to know more: Do Wasps Poo Or Pee? (The Dirty Facts)
Wasps usually rub the ground and leave a muddy brown streak as a form of excrement. It can be more considered as a poo rather than a pee. It’s completely harmless, and usually, wasps do it mid-air to avoid any contact. Wasps do not poop a lot, compared to houseflies. Flies drink a lot of water, which causes them to defecate a lot.
Do wasps puke on food (like flies)?
People may assume that wasps, like many other insects that love human food, like flies, for example, can puke on food. This is a common misconception. Usually, the process of puking can mean two things: the insect is protecting itself or digesting the food.
Flies don’t have digestive systems; instead, they have digestive enzymes that help to break down food. Unlike wasps that can chew even wood, flies are not equipped for solid foods at all.
That’s why flies need to start the process of digesting food outside of their bodies. They slurp a lot of food and then throw everything back up. Flies have sponge-like tongues, which help them to suck in their vomit.
For some insects, vomit serves as a way to feed each other. Liquids are hard to transport. That’s why some insects carry them in special parts of their bodies. This is very common among bees. They carry the nectar they ate and then move it into the honeycombs.
Wasps have a well-developed digestive system, and their stomach, also known as the ventriculus, is the largest part of their body. So they don’t need to start their digestive process outside of their bodies.
You should not worry about wasp puking on your food when it lands on it.
However, you need to pay attention to what you eat, especially outside. Wasps are small and can easily blend with your food, so you don’t notice them and then eat with your food. That’s why you need to always cover your food to avoid wasps or flies, who will puke on your food.
Wasp on Food / in Drinks
You have nothing to worry about when a wasp lands on your food. It’s completely safe, unlike flies, that can transmit different diseases to humans, which include dysentery, tuberculosis, and many more. Houseflies can carry around 65 diseases, which makes the food dangerous to eat after a fly was on it for a long time.
If you are on a picnic somewhere in nature, you need to make sure that no wasp lands on your food. This is not because wasp can transmit diseases, but because if you’re not attentive enough, you can eat it with your food and get stung in the throat.
August is the high season when wasps sting a lot. They are very active and aggressive during that month. That’s why you need to be very careful and keep an eye on wasp nests near you. Wasps will sting anything near their nest during that time.
That’s why it’s important to make sure there are no wasps around and your food and drinks are covered as much as possible. You should also drink from glasses and avoid cans to be able to see the wasp.
You can use a lid, plastic wrap, or special food cover that protects food from insects. It’s also recommended to avoid sugary drinks and strong fragrances that can attract wasps.
