Selection pressure from the wasp's environment has led to several idiosyncrasies of its behavior and lifecycle with respect to its relative species in the genus Polistes.

In addition, it has a truncated nesting season that gives rise to unique competitive dynamics among females of the species.

P. biglumis wasps use an odor-based recognition system that is the basis for all wasp-to-wasp interaction of the species.

It also exhibits darker coloration compared to other paper wasps; it has a black petiole for both sexes.

[7] Workers and queens do not exhibit morphological differences, but they can be distinguished physically by the abundance of their fat layers and behaviorally through their relative foraging efforts.

[4] Montgenèvre, a commune located in the French Cottian Alps, has been used extensively as a region to study the behavior of the wasp in its natural environment.

[1] The species found in Japan has been closely studied alongside Polistes snelleni, another common Japanese paper wasp.

The wasps of this species generally nest on the sides of rocks in meadows in the mountains or in alpine areas consisting of Pinus sylvestris and Larix decidua.

[11][12] The rate of appearance of future queens, however, is affected by environmental factors in the region; early female offspring in cold areas with high parasitism have fatter, gyne-like bodies and less foraging effort than do female offspring in warm areas with low parasitism.

Parasitism has no effect on late female offspring, but climate still affects the fat layers of their bodies.

[4] Polistes biglumis wasps exhibit a homogeneous odor that is both species- and colony-specific, and it is used by individuals to recognize nestmates.

[12] Although epicuticular hydrocarbons cover the adults and larvae of Polistes biglumis, as well as their nest surfaces, newly emerged P. biglumis wasps are accepted in foreign colonies of the same species, whereas adult non-nestmates are met with violent aggression, usually until the invading wasp is killed.

Similarly, a dead adult wasp that has been stripped of its epicuticular hydrocarbon layer elicits no reaction in a foreign nest.

Males adopt certain tiny territories, usually small stones or scrubs within a larger mating region that they patrol, defend against intruders, and mark with scent.

Because foundresses produce a large number of male offspring early in the season, and nest founders produce similar sex ratios to begin with, a section of the male offspring of the original foundress is culled by usurpers and joiners.

Sex ratio analysis indicates that the female producing all of the male workers was the original nest founder.

Accordingly, P. biglumis releases a very reduced amount of ant repellant substance on to the pedicels of the nests.

In most Polistes species, this substance is secreted via abdominal glands on pedicels to prevent ant invasion of the comb.

[1] Polistes atrimandibularis is a rare, obligate parasite that permanently invades the nest of the P. biglumis colonies.

The parasite wasp destroys all of the host eggs, and then represses the foundress's egg-laying capacity, cutting her productivity in half.

The survival of the parasite offspring relies on their queen to alter the nest paper from which the new host workers learn nestmate recognition.

[9] This expanded template leads to a far greater error rate in nestmate recognition for the host wasp.

The parasitized nest hosts demonstrate an impairment in discrimination, and are much more likely to permit even non-nestmate conspecific individuals.