ENY 3005 Family Identification

Hymenoptera: Vespidae Pronunciation: VESS-pi-dee Common name: wasps, yellowjackets, hornets

Identifying characteristics for the family Vespidae include:

• Legs of normal length, not as long as those of the Pompilidae.
• Wings folded longitudinally at rest; first discoidal cell of FW greater than half the wing length (longer than pompilids).
• Inner margin of eye usually notched.
• Pronotum extending back to the tegulae, the pronotum thus appearing triangular when viewed from the side and horseshoe-shaped when viewed from above.

• Yellowjackets, hornets, and other social wasps are all in the family Vespidae. There are also many species that are solitary; nests are usually provisioned with caterpillars.

References:

• Page 346 and plate 16 in D. J. Borror and R. E. White. 1970. A Field Guide to the Insects. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co.
• Page 382 in R. G. Bland and H. E. Jaques. 1978. How to Know the Insects, 3rd ed. Dubuque, Iowa: Wm. C. Brown Co. 409 p.
• Page 736 in D. J. Borror, C. A. Triplehorn, and N. F. Johnson. 1989. An Introduction to the Study of Insects, 6th ed. Philadelphia: Saunders College Publishing. 875 p.
• Page 596 in H. V. Daly, J. T. Doyen, and A. H. Purcell III. 1998. Introduction to Insect Biology and Diversity, 2nd ed. Oxford University Press. 680 p.

Links to other web sites

• Yellowjacket Pest Alert
• Solitary Wasps - Gordon's Insect World
• About the social Hymenoptera - Gordon's Insect World
• About social wasps - Gordon's Insect World
• Hornets and yellowjackets - Vespula