Yellow jackets are hand-to-mouth feeders for existence, particularly in the fall after the queen stops laying eggs and there’s no young to feed. When the weather turns colder, food sources disappear and they begin to starve. Starvation makes them angry and aggressive as they work hard to seek food.
Yellow jacket colonies grow largest in late summer and early fall just when their food sources begin to diminish, providing plenty of frustrated, hungry wasps. In the spring, there are fewer yellow jackets and they’re well-fed.
Also, yellow jackets can stay active in temperatures that are colder than what many other bees and insects can tolerate, which is why we often see them late into fall.
Ultimately, all of the yellow jackets die at the end of fall except for a new queen, which remains underground during winter, to start a new colony in the spring. Then the process begins over again.
californiaherps.com
