The Vespidae are a large (nearly 5000 species), diverse, cosmopolitan family of wasps, including nearly all the known eusocial wasps (such as Polistes fuscatus, Vespa orientalis, and Vespula germanica) and many solitary wasps. [1]

Paper wasps are a type of vespid wasps. The term is typically used to refer to members of the vespid subfamily Polistinae, though it often colloquially includes members of the subfamilies Vespinae (hornets and yellowjackets) and Stenogastrinae, which also make nests out of paper.

Mar 24, 2023 · These wasps search plants for caterpillars, beetle larvae and other suitable prey that are chewed, then fed to the larvae in the nest. Vespid wasps also frequently visit flowers for nectar. Unless paper wasp nests are in ‘high-traffic’ areas like a doorway, paper wasps usually do not sting people.

Vespid wasps such as the yellow jacket, Vespula pennsylvanica, and the baldfaced hornet, V. maculata, can occur in large number in orchards. Their potential as biological control agents is probably limited since they will feed on other natural enemies.

Apr 23, 2024 · An online resource devoted to North American insects, spiders and their kin, offering identification, images, and information.

Vespid (VESP-ID) wasps (Vespidae) (VESP-id-ee): A family of wasps. These include the paper wasps, yellowjackets and hornets. They are colonial (not solitary), make large nests containing many individuals and may defend these nests against all comers, including people, by stinging the intruders. They are not part of the mole cricket story.

Apr 20, 2020 · The social members of the Vespidae are generally divided into two groups: the Vespine wasps such as Yellow Jackets and Hornets; and the Polistine or Paper wasps. Not that the Vespines do not use paper to build their nest, because they do.

Vespula vulgaris, known as the common wasp, is a species found in regions that include the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, India, China, New Zealand [1] and Australia. It is sometimes known in English as the European wasp, but the same name is used for the species Vespula germanica or German wasp.

There are six recognized subfamilies of vespid wasps: Eumeninae, Euparagiinae, Masarinae, Stenogastrinae, Polistinae, and Vespinae (Fig. 1). Because of a nearly complete lack of information on mechanisms of behaviour in two of these (Euparagiinae and Masarinae), our review will focus on the remaining four subfamilies.

Feb 27, 2007 · In support of this behavioral scenario, the leading phylogenetic hypothesis of Vespidae places the eusocial wasps (subfamilies Stenogastrinae, Polistinae, and Vespinae) as a derived monophyletic clade, thus implying a single origin of eusocial behavior.