Can you really make money raising wasps? Analysis of farming profitability and prospects

Wasps are the general term for insects of the family Vespidae that undergo complete metamorphosis, also known as hornets, yellowjackets, grass wasps, and so on. In their life cycle they go through four stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. Each colony consists of a queen, workers, and drones. At present, their main uses are in biological control, medicine, and food. Let us take a look below at whether raising wasps can make money!

Can you really make money raising wasps?

If wasps are raised well, they can make money, but how to raise them well is the main problem. Wasp farming is a new industry, and it is also a very dangerous one, because wasps sting fiercely and, if not handled properly, can easily kill people. At present, the use of wasps is mainly in biological control, medicine, and food, especially in food. As early as the Tang Dynasty, they had already become a fine product given as gifts or sold among the people. In addition, wasp larvae and pupae are also a very good raw material for cosmetics, so the development and utilization of wasp resources has fairly broad application prospects and economic value.

What kinds of wasps are there in a wasp colony?

1. Queen: After overwintering, the queen, after a period of activity and supplemental nutrition, each seeks a relatively sunny and wind-sheltered place to build a nest. While building the nest, she lays the first generation of eggs, and she also takes on all the work of defending against enemies, hunting food, and rearing the first generation of larvae.

2. Drone: Drones are produced from eggs laid and bred by individuals among the second-generation female wasps that have not mated and been fertilized. They can mate with a small number of female wasps from the same nest or a different nest, and can also mate with female wasps of the same generation or the maternal generation. Shortly after mating, they die one after another.

3. Worker: Workers are responsible for all internal and external duties of the colony. The first generation of adult wasps are all workers undertaking internal and external duties. Among the second-generation female wasps, apart from the few that successfully mate and become new queens and the occasional individual female that lays male eggs without mating, the remaining majority are workers.

Efficient wasp farming techniques

1. Build a domestication cage: Build a frame with wooden strips in the field, which is the domestication cage. The lower part is buried in the soil, and the cage is fixed with wooden stakes and wire. The top and all sides are nylon gauze netting, and one side has a zipper opening for personnel to enter and exit. At the same time, cabbage caterpillars are raised inside the cage as feed for the wasps.

2. Capture and domesticate: To capture wild female wasps, you can use a homemade wasp-catching net. In spring, when wasps are flying in the wild, swing the wasp-catching net. After the wasps enter the net, put them into the domestication cage and let the wasps fly out. At the same time, provide clean water and liquid feed inside the cage.

3. Hang bee boxes: Put water and liquid feed into a bottle and invert it in a glass dish lined with absorbent filter paper or absorbent cotton. The wasps can feed through the filter paper or absorbent cotton that has absorbed enough water. And according to the number of female wasps captured, hang empty bee boxes for the wasps to use for building nests.

4. Feeding management: As the colony and larvae gradually increase, there must be enough cabbage caterpillars supplied, otherwise the wasps will cannibalize the larvae. After the first generation of adult wasps emerges, the bee boxes can be moved out of the cage and moved to the fields. There is no need to feed them, and they are allowed to prey on various pests.

5. Overwintering management: When the temperature is below 6°C, wasps will cluster together in a ball, and the bee boxes should be moved into a dry, ventilated empty room for overwintering. When the temperature rises back above 6°C, they begin to disperse from the cluster, and can be moved back into the bee cage. When the temperature stabilizes above 13°C, they gradually come out of the boxes to move around, and should be fed.