Bald-faced Hornet

Dolichovespula maculata

In spring the queen Bald-faced Hornet uses chewed wood to build a golf-ball-sized hanging nest out of gray pulp. She raises a generation of small female workers by herself. When they emerge, they bring food several times a day to the next generation of growing larvae. The nest is always constructed in the open and consists of many layers of cells that are covered on the outside, with the doorway at the bottom. In late summer, males mature from unfertilized eggs and mate. They die along with the queen, workers, and young; only young mated females live on. They hide during the winter in soil or among litter and will become queens and start their own colonies during the following spring.

Look For : Black-and-white pattern on body; dark wings; "waist" (pedicel) pinched in.

Length : 3/4".

Habitat : Meadows, forests, houses, barns.

Range : Widespread.