northeast-flora-and-fauna

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 ...

Here's someone that's certainly around central NJ (and most of the 48 contiguous states): the Bald-faced Hornet . Being closer to white than yellow, building above-ground nests, and being slightly larger than some other yellowjackets is probably why they have "hornet" in their name despite not being hornets . The other reason for the misnaming is that yellowjackets and hornets are fairly close relatives that look pretty similar. I actually looked for a good online article on the differences between yellowjackets and hornets, and most of the ones I found said things that were wrong. This video isn't scientific, but AFAIK it's accurate (though the chicken/squirrel stuff at the end is a little off topic). These wasps build many of the large papery nests that you'll frequently see hanging from trees once the leaves fall [1]. In many cases I'll find that I had been walking near their nests all summer without being harassed by them. If you're not perce...