However, it greatly prefers areas in which wood is readily available for use as nest material, therefore they are also found near and in woodlands and savannas.

[6][7] A study in which bootstrap analysis was conducted concluded that the narrower definition of P. fuscatus is part of the New World subgenus Fuscopolistes.

In addition to P. fuscatus, Fuscopolistes includes separate species concepts for P. bellicosus, P. apachus, P. aurifer, P. carolina, P. dorsalis, and P. metricus, all of which are the closest relatives of P.

[9] Northern females on the other hand are easily identified by the blackening of their entire bodies which may or may not have markings of other colors.

[9] Polistes fuscatus's distribution along the eastern half of North America ranges from southern Canada to the United States.

[2] The most northern extent of its range is Chilcotin, British Columbia,[10] and it reaches as far south as Texas and Florida.

[14][15] In early spring, the new foundress emerging from diapause starts a new colony, building an umbrella-shaped nest made of a papery material and suspended from a single stalk.

[10] Prior to nest initiation, females come together post hibernation in clusters before separating and starting their own colonies in early spring.

[10] After reaching the post-enlargement behavior, brood destruction occurs in which wasps begin exhibiting abortive behavior by either throwing larva out or feeding them to existing nest mates; if not aborted, these larvae eventually emerge as abnormal adults.

[10] Polistes fuscatus is an eusocial organism that has a hierarchical social system usually centered around one foundress.

[19] Other eusocial insects, such as soldier termites, have developed guard polymorphs that specialize in nest defense.

[10] For wasps of equal rank, it is not uncommon for them to continuously try to rise higher and begin to aggressively fight each other until they fall due to losing their foothold.

[12][10] Individual recognition is highly important in the formation of behavioral interactions between members of different castes within a nest of P.

[12] The ability to recognize individuals is vital for the existence of a linear dominance hierarchy, which facilitates reproductive suppression and division of labor.

[12] Critically, the ability to recognize individuals also helps dictate how one wasp may treat another, whether it be to hold a dominant role or to act submissively within an interaction.

[23] Researchers found that when Polistes fuscatus paper wasps live isolated, their anterior optic tubercle, the area responsible for processing visual colors, grows more relative to mushroom body.

[25] Often, female intruders that join the colony attempt to evict the previous foundress and usurp the position.

[18] Edwards indicated in his work that social wasps, “collect water, plant fibers, and carbohydrates, and hunt arthropod prey or scavenge animal proteins.” [26] Water is used for the following processes: nest cooling, construction, and metabolism; plant fibers are used for construction, and carbohydrates and protein is used as food and energy.

[5] Wasps are able to obtain water by imbibing it and regurgitating it once they return to the nest and are able to use it for construction by mixing it with the masticated plant fibers.

By mixing the plant fibers with water, wasps are able to create pulp which is then used to help the construction of nests.

[5] They use the scavenged animal protein from both vertebrates and arthropods such as: caterpillars, flies, alate ants, termites, spiders, bees, and other wasps to help the development of their brood.

[5] Although the foraging of social wasps is not as developed as some other arthropod species given its weakness in recruitment, the ability to communicate to nest mates of the location of a resource stronghold, it may impact the greater ecosystem.

[10] Prior to hibernation, males and females will undergo mating; they will aggregate together in sunlit areas that are relatively higher in location.

[10] In addition, research by Post and Jeanne has shown that Polistes fuscatus females have no preference on mating with related or unrelated males.

Venom is released by females that contains a sex pheromone that induces copulatory behavior in males.

The continual release of the venom causes males to try to copulate with females when they are unreceptive on the nest, thus interrupting the activities of the colony.

Laying these eggs during the summer ensures that the larvae are well-fed due to the great environmental conditions and abundance of food.

Polistes fuscatus foundresses likely mate with multiple males so that the relatedness of workers is less than if they all shared the same father's genes.

Finally, in the second generation of the foundresses offspring, males are usually reared earlier than reproductive females.

Additionally, the males have usually completed part of their development, giving them a higher reproductive value than new eggs.