Paper wasp nest
A distinctive feature of paper wasp construction is that the cells of their nests are exposed. This nest was built on the underside of a wooden table. The wasps kept so much to themselves that by the time we noticed, there were already several adults tending to it. Since they were already well established with more young on the way we let them remain. During the day the adults were usually occupied with collecting food for their larvae. Occasionally they would stop off at a flower for a snack or for a drink at the cats' water bowl. Paper wasps are not known for being aggressive and these certainly were not. They didn't even mind me routinely poking my head under the table to see what they were up to. Though they appeared to be content, their colony never grew beyond seven or eight adults at a time until they finally abandoned their home with the onset of the cold weather.