Polybia sericea is a social, tropical wasp[1] of the family Vespidae that can be found in South America.

[4] The wasps build multitiered nests, and colony size can vary greatly between a few to a few thousand workers.

[2] They tend to be polygynous, meaning that several egg-laying queens are within a nest, with the result that workers are generally less related to each other than in other eusocial species.

[2] Workers build enclosed, multitiered, roughly spherical nests of carton paper maché-like pulp of plant fibres chewed with saliva.

[1] P. sericea colonies can range from a few to a few thousand individuals,[2] but are typically made up of several hundred workers.

Once the colony begins to travel, leading individuals drag their gasters over prominent objects such as branches or tall grass.

[4] Pheromone communication can be used to recruit workers to a food source, a new nesting site, or a place where work is required.

[8] Because of the strong odor, workers can easily follow a pheromone trail left by other colony members.

Workers tend to search for building materials such as wood pulp in the mid-morning, and for food in the later morning and early afternoon.

[1] Once the insect is in a safe location, the wasp malaxates (softens) it by mixing it with a thinner substance, presumably saliva.

Generally, queens are larger than workers in the abdominal region, but have smaller head width and wing length.

Queens perform the reproductive tasks of the colony, while workers forage for food and nest-building materials.

[2] The morphological differences seen in this caste differentiation are also seen with the species Protopolybia chartergoides and Polybia rejecta.

More individuals are likely to attack a predator if more adults, eggs, larvae, and pupae are in the nest, since the colony has already made a large investment in developing itself.

[12] The diet of P. sericea consists of arthropods such as caterpillars and flies,[1] as well as energetic carbohydrates such as nectar and fruits.

[13] P. sericea is historically and culturally significant to the Pankararé Indians, who live in northwest Brazil.

The Pankararé often roast the combs of P. sericea larvae, and then extract them to be eaten alone or mixed with manioc flour.