wasp identification - Ask Extension
Found this worn out 2.1 cm long (head to tip of abdomen) wasp crawling slowly across my kitchen floor. I have not seen any wasps around in my yard t...
Knowledgebase
wasp identification #677161
Asked November 10, 2020, 7:50 AM EST
Found this worn out 2.1 cm long (head to tip of abdomen) wasp crawling slowly across my kitchen floor. I have not seen any wasps around in my yard this large and wondered what type of wasp it was. It is unusual to find any wasp in the house unless it flies in.
Benton County Oregon
Expert Response
The images are of a yellowjacket wasp.
No need to be concerned that you're being invaded. The groggy insect way have inadvertently hitchhiked indoors on someone's clothes.
At this time of year, yellowjacket colonies are winding down, their members dying of starvation and old age. This is a normal event, when all colony members die by December during a cold year, or January during a warmish year.
The only survivors will be mated queens which will hunker down in a protected site in gardens and landscapes for the winter. They'll reactivate in the spring, after temperatures rise, and begin a new nest in a new place.
See "Wasps, Hornets and Yellowjackets" -- https://extension.wsu.edu/spokane/2018/07/wasps-hornets-and-yellowjackets/
No need to be concerned that you're being invaded. The groggy insect way have inadvertently hitchhiked indoors on someone's clothes.
At this time of year, yellowjacket colonies are winding down, their members dying of starvation and old age. This is a normal event, when all colony members die by December during a cold year, or January during a warmish year.
The only survivors will be mated queens which will hunker down in a protected site in gardens and landscapes for the winter. They'll reactivate in the spring, after temperatures rise, and begin a new nest in a new place.
See "Wasps, Hornets and Yellowjackets" -- https://extension.wsu.edu/spokane/2018/07/wasps-hornets-and-yellowjackets/
Thank you. That was a well-fed yellowjacket!
From: "Ask Extension"
To: "Brian C. Lee"
Sent: Tuesday, November 10, 2020 9:28:32 AM
Subject: Re: wasp identification [#0001975]
To: "Brian C. Lee"
Sent: Tuesday, November 10, 2020 9:28:32 AM
Subject: Re: wasp identification [#0001975]
