Have you ever wondered?

Have you ever wondered what it looks like inside a big paper wasps' nest? Well, wasps built a nest attached to the rail of our deck last year. It actually happened while we were out west, and when we came home we didn't want to destroy it and kill all the wasps. So we co-existed with them all summer. They basically left us alone. We used the other end of the deck and were fine. They did not abandon the nest until freezing weather. We didn't get around to taking it down until today, and then I cut it open. Pretty interesting! It's like a 5-story apartment house - 5 combs, one on top of another, with an entryway at the ground floor.

The nest after I cut it down from the rail.

                     Cut open

          Close-up of one-half

           Closeup of one comb