[NatureNS] Yellow jackets

Date: Sun, 24 May 2009 10:35:10 -0300
From: Don MacNeill <donmacneill@eastlink.ca>
To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca
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Paper wasps seem to be quite benign.  I have had them nesting in my storage box for years.  I lift up the lid and see them crawling around on the nest.  I disturb them a lot as I am taking things out of the box, but they have never attacked me.  So, of course, I let them have their part of the storage box.

Don

Don MacNeill
donmacneill@eastlink.ca
----- Original Message ----- 
From: Christopher Majka 
To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca 
Sent: Sunday, May 24, 2009 9:56 AM
Subject: Re: [NatureNS] Yellow jackets


Greetings all,


On 24-May-09, at 8:50 AM, bdigout@seaside.ns.ca wrote:


  Maybe a stupid question... Is a yellow jacket just another name for a

  wasp??

  liz


The word "wasp" refers to a large number of insects in the Order Hymenoptera which includes wasps, bees, ants, and other related insects (hornets, sawflies, velvet ants, etc.) There are estimated to be over 10,000 species in the Order Hymenoptera in Canada.


Lay people often use the word "wasp" in a more restrictive sense to refer large, communally-nesting, potentially stinging wasps in the family Vespidae, particularly those in the family Vespinae (yellowjackets and bald-faced hornets), and  Polistinae (paper wasps in the genus Polistes). There are about a dozen or more of these in Nova Scotia. 


The largest one, Dolichovespula maculata (Linnaeus) is called the "bald-faced hornet" (not actually a true "hornet" which refers to wasps in the genus Vespa), and the slightly smaller species are colloquially called "yellowjackets" (Vespula spp.) as a result of their banded yellow and black coloration. The Common Paper Wasp, Polistes fuscatus (Fabricius), which can also pack quite a sting, is also abundant in Nova Scotia.


For more information on these visit the following Wikipedia web pages:


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellowjacket
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bald-faced_hornet
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polistes


All the best,


Chris



Christopher Majka  <c.majka@ns.sympatico.ca> | Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada


* Research Associate: Nova Scotia Museum | http://museum.gov.ns.ca/mnh/research-asfr.htm
* Review Editor: The Coleopterists Bulletin | http://www.coleopsoc.org/
* Subject Editor: ZooKeys | http://pensoftonline.net/zookeys/index.php/journal/index
* Associate Editor: Journal of the Acadian Entomological Society | http://www.acadianes.org/journal.html
* Editor: Atlantic Canada Coleoptera | http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/Environment/NHR/atlantic_coleoptera.html


"Whenever I hear of the capture of rare beetles, I feel like an old war-horse at the sound of a trumpet." - Charles Darwin

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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Paper wasps seem to be quite benign.&nbsp; I have 
had them nesting in my storage box for years.&nbsp; I lift up the lid and see 
them crawling around on the nest.&nbsp; I disturb them a lot as I am taking 
things out of the box, but they have never attacked me.&nbsp; So, of course, I 
let them have their part of the storage box.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Don</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV>Don MacNeill<BR><A 
href="mailto:donmacneill@eastlink.ca">donmacneill@eastlink.ca</A></DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- 
<DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A 
title=c.majka@ns.sympatico.ca href="mailto:c.majka@ns.sympatico.ca">Christopher 
Majka</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>To:</B> <A title=naturens@chebucto.ns.ca 
href="mailto:naturens@chebucto.ns.ca">naturens@chebucto.ns.ca</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>Sent:</B> Sunday, May 24, 2009 9:56 AM</DIV>
<DIV><B>Subject:</B> Re: [NatureNS] Yellow jackets</DIV></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>Greetings all,
<DIV><BR>
<DIV>
<DIV>On 24-May-09, at 8:50 AM, <A 
href="mailto:bdigout@seaside.ns.ca">bdigout@seaside.ns.ca</A> wrote:</DIV><BR 
class=Apple-interchange-newline>
<DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE type="cite">Maybe a stupid question... Is a yellow jacket just 
  another name for a<BR></BLOCKQUOTE>
<BLOCKQUOTE type="cite">wasp??<BR></BLOCKQUOTE>
<BLOCKQUOTE type="cite">liz</BLOCKQUOTE></DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>The word "wasp" refers to a large number of insects in the Order 
Hymenoptera which includes wasps, bees, ants, and other related insects 
(hornets, sawflies, velvet ants, etc.) There are estimated to be over 10,000 
species in the Order Hymenoptera in Canada.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Lay people often use the word "wasp" in a more restrictive sense to refer 
large,&nbsp;communally-nesting, potentially stinging wasps in the family 
Vespidae, particularly those in the family Vespinae (yellowjackets and 
bald-faced hornets), and &nbsp;Polistinae (paper wasps in the genus 
<I>Polistes</I>). There are about a dozen or more of these in Nova 
Scotia.&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>The largest one,&nbsp;<I>Dolichovespula maculata</I> (Linnaeus) is called 
the "bald-faced hornet" (not actually a true "hornet" which refers to wasps in 
the genus <I>Vespa</I>), and the slightly smaller species are colloquially 
called "yellowjackets" (<I>Vespula</I> spp.) as a result of their banded yellow 
and black coloration. The Common Paper Wasp,&nbsp;<I>Polistes fuscatus</I> 
(Fabricius), which can also pack quite a sting, is also abundant in Nova 
Scotia.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>For more information on these visit the following Wikipedia web 
pages:</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><A 
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellowjacket">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellowjacket</A></DIV>
<DIV><A 
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bald-faced_hornet">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bald-faced_hornet</A></DIV>
<DIV><A 
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polistes">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polistes</A></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>All the best,</DIV&g