Paper Wasp
Belanogaster juncea (?)
This polistinae wasp nest was located in breezeway just above the entrance to the administration building at Chepkolel Campus, Eldoret, Kenya. October 2010. Ozren Polašek suggested the identification.
Paper wasps construct nests from paper that the workers produce using chewed wood and salivary secretions. To keep the nests dry and the developing larvae and pupae dry and safe the nests are often built in the protected areas beneath eaves and other overhangs on human dwellings. The adults wasps prey on insects and also bring nectar and pollen from flowers to feed the young within the papery cells. This species apparently is tolerant of human activity nearby and thus may be seen as beneficial because of the many caterpillars and other insects consumed.
This appears to be the same or a closely related species from Mweiga, Nyeri County, Kenya. Dec. 2015.