Probable Bald-faced Hornet Nest

Although I didn't get iNaturalist confirmation on this, it's quite likely that this was a Bald-faced Hornet nest. They certainly build large papery nests like this, and (if I remember correctly):

  • Common Aerial Yellowjackets build smoother looking nests.
  • European Hornets build similar nests but usually in more sheltered locations like hollow trees.
  • The Bald-faced Hornet builds exposed nests more likely to get blown down over a winter, and seems to be more common than the other 2.
As I've mentioned in the past, Bald-faced Hornets are really a type of yellowjacket, not a type of hornet. There are 0 hornets native to North America, though there are some living here. In partial defense of the misleading name, yellowjackets and hornets look fairly similar, and there probably weren't a lot of world-class entomologist European colonists around to give them their correct name. 

These nests blowing down over the winter isn't a threat to these wasps. The residents of the nest won't survive the winter anyway, and the fertilized queens have found other hiding places to weather the winter. These queens will start building new nests the following spring.

May 4, 2023 at Duke Farms
Photo 278563466, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

May 4, 2023 at Duke Farms
Photo 278563476, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)


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