Vespula acadica
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Vespula acadica, also known as the forest yellowjacket, is a North American species of eusocial wasp which is part of the "rufa" group within the genus Vespula. It is a black and yellow wasp that is found in arboreal areas and builds its nests most often in decaying vegetation like logs, but has occasionally been found to build aerial nests. Due to its preference for forests V. acadica does not normally come into contact with humans; however, when colonies are disturbed, workers of this yellowjacket may be quite aggressive and persistent and sting repeatedly.
V. acadica belongs to the genus of Vespula which includes numerous species of social wasps. The wasps within the genus Vespula are found throughout the Northern Hemisphere and are commonly referred to as yellowjackets in North America. Vespula wasps are commonly mistaken for other genera, most often the paper wasps of the genus Polistes. V. acadica is considered to be a member of the Vespula rufa group and is most closely related to other members of the group, including Vespula consobrina and Vespula atropilosa.
V. acadica is black with yellow markings and ranges... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pacific Rim National Park Reserve | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Acadia National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Great Bear Rainforest | 🇨🇦 Canada |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vancouver | 🇨🇦 Canada |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Forest Yellowjacket sighting in Vancouver on a given day, based on 8 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 350th most-seen of the 482 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Forest Yellowjacket in Vancouver on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Forest 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.
Only Vancouver, in our data
Vancouver is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Forest Yellowjacket sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same genus: Vespula
The closest relatives of the Forest Yellowjacket that you can see in Vancouver (genus Vespula, Ground Yellowjackets) are Western Yellowjacket (about 10%), American Yellowjacket (about 10%) and German Yellowjacket (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Forest Yellowjacket is recorded against all the insects logged in Vancouver (8 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.
