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Latin Name: Vespula alascensis
Common Name: Common Yellowjacket
Other Names: Formerly Vespula vulgaris (European), The common wasp
Pest Details
Origin:This is a native species in North America and can be found throughout all of the U.S. and southern
Biology:
This is one of several species of yellowjackets referred to as “scavenger” species, due to their tendency to forage for human foods such as meat products and sugary beverages. Most of the 13 North American species, for the most part, restrict their diet to natural foods of honeydew, other insects, and similar sweet or protein sources. In warm regions a colony may continue from year to year, but where winters are cold the social structure breaks down in the fall with females mating and going into hibernation while all workers die and the nest deteriorates with weathering. The fertilized queen begins a new nest in the spring with around a dozen eggs, and once these have
Latin Name: Vespa crabro
Common Name: European Hornet
Other Names: Giant hornet
Pest Details
Origin:This wasp is native to Europe but found its way into North America by 1840 and now can be found throughout the eastern half of the United States and into southeastern Canada.
Biology:
This imported species is similar to common yellowjackets but is considerably larger and has reddish brown patches and lines on the head, thorax, and abdomen in addition to the typical yellow markings of yellowjackets. While it can be very aggressive toward people near its nest or even around favored food resources, in many European countries they are offered legal protection, with heavy fines given to people who harm them. The sting is reported to be very painful and for the pain to last several days. Other problems include damage to domestic honeybee colonies as the wasps prey on the bees, damage to fruit on trees from wasp feeding,
Latin Name: Polistes dominula
Common Name: European Paper Wasp
Other Names: Dominulus paper wasp
Pest Details
Origin:This species is native to Europe but was introduced into the U.S. as early as 1968 in New Jersey. In the 1980’s and 1990’s it spread throughout the rest of the U.S. and now is found in Canada, Australia, and throughout Latin America.
Biology:
This small paper wasp entered North America in the 1960’s and moved steadily across the country from East Coast to West Coast. In some areas it seems to have displaced most native paper wasps. The proposed reasons for this dominance include an earlier emergence in the spring, allowing it to monopolize natural food resources and good nesting sites. Colonies often are small but typically placed within small cavities such as bird houses, roofing tiles, lamp and exterior lights, dense shrubbery, and pipes where entry is available to the interior. Fertilized females
Latin Name: Vespula germanica
Common Name: German Yellowjacket
Other Names: European yellowjacket
Pest Details
Origin:This species is native to Europe and is the common species in the eastern U.S. and Canada.
Biology:
This is one of several species of yellowjackets referred to as “scavenger” species, due to their tendency to forage for human foods such as meat products and sugary beverages. Most of the 13 North American species, for the most part, restrict their diet to natural foods of honeydew, other insects, and similar sweet or protein sources. In warm regions a colony may continue from year to year, but where winters are cold the social structure breaks down in the fall with females mating and going into hibernation while all workers die and the nest deteriorates with weathering. The fertilized queen begins a new nest in the spring with around a dozen eggs, and once these have matured to new adults the workers
Latin Name: Atomacera decepta
Common Name: Hibiscus Sawfly
Other Names: Mallow sawfly, Hollyhock sawfly
Pest Details
Origin:This may be a native species that is found in the eastern half of the U.S.
Biology:
This wasp is a pest on rose mallow and many hybrids of other ornamental hibiscus that are native plants in the southern U.S., but which often are planted as ornamentals in other regions of North America. The female wasp deposits eggs in short rows along the margins of leaves, leading to brown spots at this point on the leaf. The larvae then feed in clusters on the undersides of the leaves, feeding only on the soft tissue and not the veins and leading to skeletonizing of the leaf. This feeding begins in late spring and multiple generations are likely. The life cycle from egg to adult is about 1 month, with the larvae pupating on the lower stems or in the soil below.
Identification:The adult wasp is about 3/16 inch
Latin Name: Siricidae
Common Name: Horntails
Latin Family Name: Siricidae
Other Names: Wood wasps
Pest Details
Origin:About 18 species of horntail wasps are native to North America, with most species in the western half of the continent.
Biology:
The horntail wasps derive their name from the presence of a horn-like projection on the top of the last segment of the abdomen on the female. These are solitary wasps whose larvae feed within the sound wood of dead trees, gathering their nourishment from a fungus that grows with them as they bore through the wood. The female wasp will lay her eggs only on the bark of trees, injecting them below the surface. In this way it is common for lumber to be milled with the wasp larvae already in it, allowing the larvae then to be built into a structure. The wasps will not infest wood already in use. Once the adult wasp develops it bores its way out of the wood through
Latin Name: Pristiphora geniculata
Common Name: Mountain-ash Sawfly
Other Names: N/A
Pest Details
Origin:This is a native species in North America.
Biology:
These wasp larvae feed on several species of mountain ash throughout the northern tier of states in the U.S. and in southern Canada. The female wasp deposits eggs in short rows along the margins of leaves, leading to brown spots at this point on the leaf. The larvae then feed in clusters on the leave, beginning along the margins and leading to complete defoliation of the branches they feed on. This feeding begins in late spring and multiple generations are likely. The life cycle from egg to adult is about 1 month, with the larvae pupating on the lower stems or in the soil below.
Identification:The adult wasp is about 3/16 inch long and solid shiny black. The abdomen joins to the thorax without a thin waist and the sides of the abdomen are parallel. The larva is similar
Latin Name: Trypoxylon sp.
Common Name: Organ Pipe Mud Daubers
Other Names: N/A
Pest Details
Origin:This is a native species in eastern North America.
Biology:
This solitary, beneficial wasp is found throughout the eastern half of the U.S. and southern Canada. It’s common name is given due to the characteristic look of the mud nests, which consist of elongated cells stacked one on top of or next to another, rather than the solid blob of mud made by the black and yellow mud dauber. Each cell will be provisioned with 3 to 18 spiders and then an egg. Males do not participate in the construction of the cells, but may stand guard near the cells and threaten intruders with a loud buzzing sound. Otherwise these wasps are not aggressive and would sting only if specifically threatened, such as being caught in clothing.
Identification:The adult wasp is a very shiny deep black on the head, thorax, and abdomen and shiny blue-black
Latin Name: Polistes sp.
Common Name: Paper Wasps
Other Names: Umbrella wasp
Pest Details
Origin:Many species of these wasps are native insects in North America.
Biology:
The umbrella wasps derive their name from the upside-down umbrella shape of their nests. They are closely related to yellowjackets, but have smaller colonies, exposed cells in the nest, and are not the annoying scavengers on human foods that yellowjackets are. These wasps are a nuisance when they sting someone who gets too near their hive or when they are foraging for foods in orchards or backyard gardens. Adults feed on sugary liquids, but gather natural foods such as insect larvae to feed to their own offspring. Colonies do not survive the winter, but are started by a single fertilized female which over-wintered in a protected location. The nest is created from chewed bark, dried plant parts, or other cellulose materials, and the cells in
Latin Name: Caliroa cerasi
Common Name: Pear Sawfly
Other Names: Pear slug, Cherry slug
Pest Details
Origin:This is a native species in North America.
Biology:
This pest is found throughout the U.S. and southern Canada wherever the host plants are found, and these include pear, cherry, apricot, plum, and some ornamentals such as hawthorn and ash. The larvae are capable of defoliating large areas of the trees, leading to reduced vigor in the tree, reduced fruit size and quality, and reduced bloom the next year. Female wasps deposit eggs in the tissues of the leaf, often in the upper branches, and two generations occur each year. The second generation is usually larger and progresses more quickly to the adult stage. The larvae often feed alone on a leaf but feed on the soft tissues, leave the leaf veins behind, and result in a skeletonized leaf.
Identification:The larva of this wasp is unusual in that as it grows