Vespula squamosa
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
Vespula squamosa, or the southern yellowjacket, is a social wasp. This species can be identified by its distinctive black and yellow patterning and orange queen. This species is typically found in eastern North America, and its territory extends as far south as Central America. Within these territories, they create enormous, multiple-comb nests. The colonies may be either annual or perennial depending on the climate, and in many perennial nests, polygyny takes place. In addition, this species uses pheromones both as a sexual attractant and an alarm signal. This species feeds on insects and animal carcasses; it does not produce honey. V. squamosa, a social insect, has developed a parasitic relationship with the species V. vidua and V. maculifrons. Due to their painful, venomous stings, the species is considered a pest.
V. squamosa is commonly called the southern yellowjacket. It was described by Dru Drury around 1770. It is a member of the family Vespidae, which includes paper wasps (subfamily Polistinae), pollen wasps (subfamily Masarinae), potter and mason wasps (subfamily Eumeninae), and yellow jackets (subfamily Vespinae). The family Vespidae has about... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Everglades National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toluca | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 2 | Baltimore | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Philadelphia | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Dallas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | San Antonio | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Puebla | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 9 | Mexico City | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 10 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Southern Yellowjacket sighting in Toluca on a given day, based on 22 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 25th most-seen of the 70 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
September to January
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Southern Yellowjacket in Toluca on a given day, against under 5% in February–April and June–August, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Southern Yellowjacket sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 12 cities where we can rate Southern Yellowjacket sightings, Toluca has the highest daily chance: about 20%. Next come Baltimore (United States, about 10%) and Philadelphia (United States, about 10%).
Same order: Hymenoptera
The closest relatives of the Southern Yellowjacket that you can see in Toluca (order Hymenoptera, Ants, Bees, Wasps, and Sawflies) are Sonoran Bumble Bee (about 30%), Xantocampsomeris limosa (about 20%) and Mesoamerican Bumble Bee (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Southern Yellowjacket is recorded against all the insects logged in Toluca (22 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.
