Background
European wasps Vespula germanica are a highly successful invasive pest. They are social insects that are a notorious group of invaders. These wasps live in colonies, have overlapping generations, cooperatively care for the young and are defensive of the nests (Moller, 1996, Lefoe et al., 2001). The European wasp is a very successful and destructive social insect in its introduced range (Moller et al., 1991, Crosland, 1991, Moller, 1996).