Hornet Disposes Of Body's Liquid Waste

Occurred on September 9, 2017 / Dohr, Germany

Info from Licensor: "Hornets urinate
I am Lothar Lenz, a nature photographer with heart and soul, and I am lucky enough to live in a small cul-de-sac village in the Eifel - surrounded by fields, forests and stream valleys, just a stone's throw from the Moselle valley. Here I can experience nature in all its diversity and observe some of the most fascinating animals right on my doorstep: Black storks, wildcats and eagle owls are my permanent neighbors. In summer, my garden is full of hornets and wasps, which I capture with my camera, whether in impressive close-ups or exciting video sequences. This closeness to nature inspires me every day and drives me to capture the beauty and uniqueness of our environment in my photographs. My desire is to inspire and motivate others to get involved in protecting this wonderful world - be it in distant regions or right on their own doorstep.

Last summer I again spent many hours observing, photographing and filming social wasps in my garden in Dohr (in the Eifel) in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. I spent hundreds of hours observing and arranging the animals until they got used to me (and I to them), and then I managed to take some extraordinary pictures.

Observing nature and especially animals is my passion. There are always new things to discover. Sometimes these observations are amusing, sometimes tragic, but always interesting.

Hornets (Vespa crabro) do not have a specific behavior that could be described as 'urinating' in the human sense, but they dispose of excess liquid in a remarkable way. At the nest entrance, workers can sometimes be seen releasing small droplets of a clear liquid. This fluid consists mainly of water with dissolved metabolic waste products, which are filtered out of the body by the Malpighian vessels - the functional equivalent of the kidneys in insects.
This behavior occurs especially in warm weather or high humidity. The liquid released evaporates quickly and helps to regulate the microclimate within the nest. At the same time, hornets prevent excessive accumulation of moisture, which could soften the nest material or promote mold growth. It can sometimes be observed that workers actively control the discharge of liquid by slightly lifting the ends of their abdomen and deliberately releasing drops."