''Dolichovespula'' is a small

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

social Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not. Etymology The word "social" derives fro ...

wasp A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder ...

s distributed widely throughout the

Northern Hemisphere The Northern Hemisphere is the half of Earth that is north of the equator. For other planets in the Solar System, north is defined by humans as being in the same celestial sphere, celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the Solar ...

. The yellow and black members of the genus are known by the

common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often con ...

yellowjacket Yellowjacket or yellowjacket is the common name in North America for predatory social wasps of the genus, genera ''Vespula'' and ''Dolichovespula''. Members of these genera are known simply as "wasps" in other English-speaking countries. Most of ...

s in

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, such as ''

Dolichovespula norwegica The Norwegian wasp (''Dolichovespula norwegica'') is a species of eusocial wasp. It is common in Scandinavia and can also be found in Scotland and other areas in Britain and Ireland. Often known for being a tree wasp, it nests in low branches a ...

'', along with members of their sister genus ''

Vespula ''Vespula'' is a small genus of social wasps, widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere. Along with members of their sister genus '' Dolichovespula'', they are collectively known by the common name yellowjackets (or yellow jackets) in North ...

''. In a study on the nesting biology of ''Dolichovespula'', a colony of '' D. maculata'' with 771 workers was reported as having the largest recorded population count.

Overview

Several morphological differences distinguish them from ''

''. The most noticeable is the long face (''dolikhos'' = "long" in

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

). Viewed from the front, ''Dolichovespula'' faces are long, while ''Vespula'' faces are short and round. The oculomalar space, the distance between the eye and the mandible, is long in ''Dolichovespula'' and short in ''Vespula''. ''Dolichovespula'' nests are usually aerial, while ''Vespula'' spp. often nest underground.

Reproduction

All females are born with

reproductive The reproductive system of an organism, also known as the genital system, is the biological system made up of all the anatomical organs involved in sexual reproduction. Many non-living substances such as fluids, hormones, and pheromones are al ...

capacities. ''Dolichovespula'' is different from its sister group ''Vespula'' in that some of the workers create haploid offspring that develop into males.

Species and subspecies

These species/subspecies are recognised: * '' Dolichovespula adulterina'' (Buysson, 1905) –

parasitic Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives (at least some of the time) on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The ent ...

yellowjacket * '' Dolichovespula adulterina montivaga'' Sk. Yamane, 1982 –

yellowjacket (subspecies of ''D. adulterina''subspecies of ''Dolichovespula adulterina''
/ref>) * '' Dolichovespula alpicola'' Eck 1984 – Rocky Mountain aerial yellowjacket * '' Dolichovespula arctica'' Rohwer 1916 –

yellowjacket (not a subspecies of ''D. adulterina'') * '' Dolichovespula arenaria'' (Fabricius, 1775) – aerial yellowjacket * '' Dolichovespula asiatica'' Archer, 1981 * '' Dolichovespula baileyi'' Archer, 1987 * '' Dolichovespula carolina'' (Linnaeus, 1767) * '' Dolichovespula flora'' Archer, 1987 * '' Dolichovespula kuami'' Kim, 1996 * '' Dolichovespula lama'' (Buysson, 1903) * ''

Dolichovespula maculata ''Dolichovespula maculata'' is a species of wasp in the genus '' Dolichovespula'' and a member of the eusocial, cosmopolitan family Vespidae. It is taxonomically an aerial yellowjacket but is known by many colloquial names, primarily bald-faced ...

'' (Linnaeus, 1763) – bald-faced hornet * '' Dolichovespula media'' (Retz., 1783) – median wasp * '' Dolichovespula norvegicoides'' (Sladen, 1918) – Arctic yellowjacket * ''

'' (Fabricius 1781) – Norwegian wasp * '' Dolichovespula omissa'' (Bischoff, 1931) –

yellowjacket * '' Dolichovespula pacifica'' (Birula, 1930) * '' Dolichovespula panda'' Archer, 1980 * '' Dolichovespula saxonica'' (Fabricius, 1793) – Saxon wasp * '' Dolichovespula stigma'' Lee 1986 * ''

Dolichovespula sylvestris The tree wasp (''Dolichovespula sylvestris'') is a species of eusocial wasp in the family Vespidae, found in the temperate regions of Eurasia, particularly in western Europe. Despite being called the tree wasp, it builds both aerial and undergrou ...

'' (Scopoli, 1763) – tree wasp * '' Dolichovespula sylvestris sumptuosa'' (Buysson, 1905) (subspecies of ''D. sylvestris''subspecies of ''Dolichovespula sylvestris''
/ref>) * '' Dolichovespula xanthicincta'' Archer, 1980

References

*
Bald-faced hornet.
Baldfacedhornet.net

External links

* * Vespidae Taxa named by Sievert Allen Rohwer {{Vespidae-stub