The following section
gives more detailed information on identification
features. Although
Hornet is visually totally different in colouration and
size to the other social wasps, we have included it in
the following section purely for completeness. |
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Hornet Vespa crabro (Linnaeus,
1758) |
Hornet
identification should not present a problem, even
to the inexperienced observer. In flight, Hornets
are easy to identify through combination of size
(workers are usually over 2.5cm long) and
colouration. The only possible confusion can come
from Dolichovespula media queens seen
during the Spring and Autumn, which exhibit
similar colouration, although they are much
smaller than Hornet queens. |
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Facial features |
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Ocular sinus and front of head completely
yellow, with distinct chestnut patch towards top
of head. Clypeus completely yellow. |
Thoracic features |
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Thorax with no yellow lines or
spots. Pronotum wholly dark chestnut. Episternum
with areas of dark chestnut becoming almost black
in places. Metatonum chestnut with no
elongated yellow spots. Propodeum chestnut. |
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1. Vespa
crabro (facial markings) |
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2. Vespa
crabro (thoracic markings) |
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3. Vespa
crabro (side view of thoracic
markings) |
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4. Vespa
crabro (typical abdominal markings) |
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Median
Wasp Dolichovespula media (Retzius,
1783) |
A
large wasp. Some workers can show an almost
entirely black abdominal colouration leaving just
thin yellow bands along each Tergum,
making them very distinctive. |
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Facial features |
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Ocular sinus largely
yellow. Clypeus yellow with thin black
line or elongated central spot. Side of head
largely yellow immediately behind the eye. |
Thoracic features |
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Thorax shiny in comparison
to other species. Pronotum with thin
yellow borders from behind head and extending
towards wings and downwards vertically behind
head. Metatonum with two elongated
yellow/orange spots that nearly touch.
Episternum black with no yellow spots. Propodeum
black with no yellow spots or blotches. |
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1. Dolichovespula
media (facial markings) |
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2. Dolichovespula
media (thoracic markings) |
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3. Dolichovespula
media (side view of thoracic
markings) |
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4. Dolichovespula
media (typical abdominal markings) |
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Saxon
Wasp Dolichovespula saxonica
(Fabricius, 1793) |
A
large wasp which is probably rare in
Nottinghamshire. |
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Facial features |
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Ocular sinus Short yellow
line running from the Clypeus to behind
antennae, but not usually extending above the
antennae. Clypeus yellow with a small
black spot or short, elongated central spot.
Small, dull yellow patch at top of head behind
the eye. |
Thoracic features |
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Thorax dull in comparison
to Median Wasp workers. Pronotum with
thin yellow border from behind head and extending
towards wings. Metatonum with two small
and well spaced yellow spots. Episternum
black with roughly triangular yellow spot below
wings. Propodeum black with yellow spots
or blotches. |
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1. Dolichovespula
saxonica (facial markings) |
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2. Dolichovespula
saxonica (thoracic markings) |
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3. Dolichovespula
saxonica (side view of thoracic
markings) |
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4. Dolichovespula
saxonica (typical abdominal
markings) |
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Tree
Wasp Dolichovespula
sylvestris (Scopoli, 1763) |
A
large wasp which is
probably fairly common across much of
Nottinghamshire. |
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Facial features |
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Ocular sinus with yellow
line running from the Clypeus to at
least top of eye. Clypeus yellow with
indistinct, small central spot. Head and sides of
face with conspicuous long hairs, easily longer
than on other Dolichovespula species. |
Thoracic features |
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Thorax shiny with long
hairs. Pronotum with yellow border from
behind head, becoming notably broader towards
wings. Metatonum with no elongated
yellow spots or blotches. Episternum
black with triangular yellow spot below base of
wing. Propodeum black with no yellow
spots or blotches. |
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1. Dolichovespula
sylvestris (facial markings) |
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2. Dolichovespula
sylvestris (thoracic markings) |
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3. Dolichovespula
sylvestris (side view of thoracic
markings) |
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4. Dolichovespula
sylvestris (typical abdominal
markings) |
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Red
Wasp Vespula rufa (Linnaeus,
1758) |
A
fairly small wasp, which seems common in
Nottinghamshire. Workers show some variation in
the amount and extent of the red markings on the
abdomen. The one illustrated shows quite an
extreme amount of red. |
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Facial features |
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Ocular sinus with yellow
line running above the eye, leaving clear space
between the Clypeus and the start of the
line. Clypeus yellow with thick black
vertical line creating a broad anchor mark.
Yellow patch at front of head (between antennae)
small in relation to other species. Side of head
with a small yellow spot, becoming white down
length of the eye. |
Thoracic features |
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Pronotum with yellow border
from behind head and extending towards wings. Metatonum
with two very small yellow spots. Episternum
black with dull yellow triangular spot. Propodeum
black with no yellow spots or blotches. |
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1. Vespula
rufa (facial markings) |
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2. Vespula
rufa (thoracic markings) |
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3. Vespula
rufa (side view of thoracic
markings) |
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4. Vespula
rufa (abdominal markings) |
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Common
Wasp Vespula vulgaris (Linnaeus,
1758) |
A
relatively small wasp which is very common
throughout Nottinghamshire and the most likely
encountered. Common Wasp workers show quite a
large amount of variation in abdominal
colouration and markings. |
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Facial features |
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Ocular sinus largely
yellow. Clypeus yellow with black
vertical line forming a characteristic anchor
mark (see also Red Wasp) |
Thoracic features |
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Pronotum with quite a thick
yellow border from behind head and extending
towards wings. There is a small yellow patch at
the wing joint and often a further tiny spot
between end of yellow Pronotum border
and triangular spot on Episternum. Metatonum
with two elongated yellow spots that nearly
touch. Episternum black with yellow
triangular spot. Propodeum black with
irregular yellow blotch on either side. |
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1. Vespula
vulgaris (facial markings) |
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2. Vespula
vulgaris (thoracic markings) |
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3. Vespula
vulgaris (side view of thoracic
markings) |
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4. Vespula
vulgaris (abdominal markings vary) |
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German
Wasp Vespula germanica (Fabricius,
1793) |
A
fairly small and common species. German Wasp
workers are very similar to some Common Wasps,
although abdominal pattern seems to vary little
in this species. |
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Facial features |
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Ocular sinus largely
yellow. Clypeus yellow often three black
dots in the centre (the lower two usually
smaller). There is a black notch at the top of
the Clypeus, which on some workers can
be extended or joined to the upper spot in the
centre of the Clypeus. In the more
extreme cases, some German Wasp workers can
resemble Common Wasp workers and other facial
features need to be checked. |
Thoracic features |
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Pronotum with yellow border
of irregular width from behind head and extending
towards wing, meeting a yellow blotch at wing
base. Metatonum with two elongated
yellow spots, with clear seperation.
Episternum black with yellow triangular spot
and quite sharply angled. Propodeum black
with large yellow blotches, less irregularly
shaped than on Common Wasp. |
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1. Vespula
germanica (facial markings) |
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2. Vespula
germanica (thoracic markings) |
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3. Vespula
germanica (side view of thoracic
markings) |
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4. Vespula
germanica (typical abdominal
markings) |
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