Rain-Resistant Mud Dauber Nest

A mud dauber wasp, of some sort, built her nest on my front step in the spring of 2015. The nest location was in full sun (southern exposure) and out in the open, so that it had no rain protection. In April of 2016, the wasp emerged, leaving the exit hole. So the larval wasp developed successfully, in a nest with full exposure to weather. Striking to me was that the mud nest did not melt away, despite the extensive rains we had.

This nest, therefore has been exposed to a full year of rain, and still looks, for the most part, like it did when it was first constructed. (November 2016)

In November 2018, the mud dauber nest still exists, having survived two more winters and summers. That is three full winters this wasp nest, made of mud, has survived. How did this wasp make such a weather-resistant mud nest? This location gets full sun, as it faces due south. And it is exposed to all the rain, and we have had a lot in three years. This just amazes me.

It is clear that the mud had to survive a full winter, to allow the larval wasp time to develop. The protein that was used to bind the mud is amazingly effective, as the nest, although deteriorating, has survived three full winters.

Click to enlarge.

22 November 2016

The rain-resistant mud dauber nest still remains. 11 November 2018. How can it survive?