Hornet

Share Top Five January 31, 2019

Hornets (insects in the genus Vespa) are the largest of the eusocial wasps, and are similar in appearance to their close relatives yellowjackets. Some species can reach up to 5.5 cm (2.2 in) in length. They are distinguished from other vespinewasps by the relatively large top margin of the head and by the rounded segment of the abdomen just behind the waist. Worldwide, there are 22 recognized species of Vespa, Most species only occur in the tropics of Asia, though the European hornet (Vespa crabro), is widely distributed throughout Europe, Russia, North America and Northeast Asia. Wasps native to North America in the genus Dolichovespula are commonly referred to as hornets (e.g. baldfaced hornets), but are actually yellowjackets,More info:wiki

Below are photos and Images you may like:

#10 Hornet and wasps. Best of one day. Hornissen u. Wespen 30.8.2018 SONY RX10 IV,More info:Lothar Lenz

#9 A Buzzworthy Find: European Hornet Identified For The First Time In Vermont,More info:digital.vpr

The first Vermont specimen of the large European hornet was found in the southern part of the state and identified last month by the Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation.

The department says it’s possible the species has been here for a while and only just now been identified.

The yellow, black and brown insect is nearly twice the size of Vermont’s more familiar black-and-white baldfaced hornet. The European hornet first appeared in this country when it was inadvertently introduced in the mid-1800s and now ranges from the Northeast into the deep South and west to the Dakotas.

Michael Skvarla, director of the Insect Identification Lab at Penn State University, said what sets the European hornet apart is the fact it’s the only hornet that forages at night.

“They can be pests around porch lights at night,” he said. “If you’re trying to sit out on your porch, they’ll come and buzz around the light, feeding on moths and other insects that come to the light.”

#8 World’s Biggest Hornet: Insect Behind Deadly Attacks,More info:nationalgeographic

#7 EUROPEAN HORNET,More info:barrettineenv

Adult worker hornets are between 18 to 24 mm long, so are noticeably longer and bulkier than the common wasp. They have two pairs of wings, a characteristic narrow waist between abdomen and thorax, transverse brown and yellow bands on the abdomen, and a sting.

#6 Australian Hornet,More info:realmonstrosities

This wasp-shaped dollop of sunshine is the Australian Hornet, a potter wasp hailing from western Australia.

The fact that it’s a potter wasp means it isn’t an actual hornet. Real hornets are the 20 or so species of social wasp in the genus Vespa, NONE of which live in Australia (weird, I know. All those snakes and spiders and crocodiles and jellyfish, yet not single hornet! Australia really dropped the ball on that one).

#5 WINTER SURVIVAL, PART 1: EUROPEAN HORNET, VESPA CRABRO,More info:bugoftheweek

Insects use many strategies to survive winter’s cold in chilly regions of the country, including Maryland. Last week while searching through my woodpile, I discovered a very chilly European hornet that had snuggled into my firewood in advance of Old Man Winter. The torpid creature was too drowsy to muster much of a greeting as I picked it up for a look.

This encounter was quite different from another meeting with these titans of the hornet world that I had a few years back. One afternoon, I received a phone call from an animated homeowner who had discovered exceedingly large wasps inhabiting an ancient tree in her backyard. After a brief discussion of their nocturnal antics, ferocious appearance, but otherwise gentle demeanor, I informed her that her visitors were likely continental in origin, that is to say European, and perhaps this explained a kind of six-legged civility not normally seen in large stinging insects. A visit to the property revealed a magnificent colony of European hornets living in the trunk of an old silver maple. European hornets were introduced into New York from Europe sometime between 1840 and 1860. They took to the New World, spread steadily, and now occupy territory from the east coast to the Mississippi.

The story of the hornet colony is fascinating. Way back in spring, the colony was founded by a single queen that had survived the winter in a protected spot beneath the bark of a fallen tree or in a woodpile like mine. Upon emerging in spring, the queen discovered the cavity in the maple tree and founded a colony. After the queen successfully raised her first batch of sterile female workers, she remained in the nest producing more offspring while her daughters took up the tasks of enlarging the nest, protecting it, and gathering food to feed the young. On the menu were delectable protein treats, caterpillars, flies, grasshoppers and other stinging insects like yellow jackets.