Northern Warrior Wasp

Northern Warrior Wasp

Synoeca septentrionalis

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Medellín

In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%

45 Verified sightings at Medellín
259 In all 18 parks From 2019 to 2026
July Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Northern Warrior Wasp

Synoeca septentrionalis is one of five species of wasps in the genus Synoeca. It is a swarm-founding wasp that is also eusocial, exhibiting complicated nest structure and defense mechanisms and a colony cycle including a pre-emergence phase and a post-emergence phase. It is typically found in areas from Central to South America. This wasp is one of the larger species of paper wasps and exhibits multiple morphological adaptations as a result of this. Synoeca septentrionalis is known for possessing an extremely painful sting.

Synoeca septentrionalis is one of five species of wasp in the genus Synoeca, with the other four being S. chalybea, S. cyanea, S. surinama, and S. virginea. Wasps in the genus Synoeca are often referred to as warrior wasps and are found in various areas in the Americas. Each wasp in the genus exhibits similar characteristics, but from a phylogenetic standpoint, S. septentrionalis is most closely related to S. surinama and S. cyanea. The wasps in this genus are also a part of the paper wasp tribe known as Epiponini, which are Neotropical. In general, the genus is quite aggressive and will often display cohesive defense mechanisms when... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Ostional Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~30%
2 Machalilla National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~20%
3 Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
4 Santa Rosa National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
5 Masaya Volcano National Park 🇳🇮 Nicaragua
~20%
6 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~20%
7 Tenorio Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
8 Tortuguero National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
9 Carara National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
10 Arenal Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
11 Braulio Carrillo National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
12 Manuel Antonio National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
13 Cahuita National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
14 Calakmul Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~10%
15 Corcovado National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
16 La Amistad International Park (Panama) 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
17 Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
18 Parque Natural Metropolitano 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Valencia 🇻🇪 Venezuela
~30%
2 Cali 🇨🇴 Colombia
~20%
3 San José 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
4 Guayaquil 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~10%
5 Medellín 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
6 Caracas 🇻🇪 Venezuela
~10%
7 San Salvador 🇸🇻 El Salvador
~10%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Northern Warrior Wasp in Medellín?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Warrior Wasp sighting in Medellín on a given day, based on 45 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 19th most-seen of the 175 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Northern Warrior Wasp in Medellín?

July

In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Warrior Wasp in Medellín on a given day, against about 10% in August to June, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Northern Warrior Wasp?

Between 9 am and noon

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Northern Warrior Wasp sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Medellín the best place to see a Northern Warrior Wasp?

5th of 7

Of the 7 cities where we can rate Northern Warrior Wasp sightings, Medellín ranks 5th at about 10%. The best odds are in Valencia (Venezuela, about 30%), Cali (Colombia, about 20%) and San José (Costa Rica, about 10%).

Where does the Northern Warrior Wasp sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Northern Warrior Wasp is recorded against all the insects logged in Medellín (45 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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