Widow Yellowjacket
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Washington

In 3 days ~10%

8 Verified sightings at Washington
24 In all 2 parks From 2019 to 2026
April Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Widow Yellowjacket

Vespula vidua, known generally as the long yellowjacket or widow yellowjacket, is a species of stinging wasp in the family Vespidae. Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Shenandoah National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
2 Great Smoky Mountains National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Boston 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
2 Baltimore 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
3 Philadelphia 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
4 Minneapolis [Saint Paul] 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
5 New York City 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
6 Toronto 🇨🇦 Canada
<5%
7 Washington 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Widow Yellowjacket in Washington?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Widow Yellowjacket sighting in Washington on a given day, based on 8 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 1330th most-seen of the 1807 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Widow Yellowjacket in Washington?

Any time of year

In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Widow Yellowjacket in Washington on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.

What time of day is best to see a Widow Yellowjacket?

Between 1 and 4 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Widow Yellowjacket sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Washington the best place to see a Widow Yellowjacket?

7th of 7

Of the 7 cities where we can rate Widow Yellowjacket sightings, Washington ranks 7th at under 5%. The best odds are in Boston (United States, about 10%), Baltimore (United States, under 5%) and Philadelphia (United States, under 5%).

Which relatives of the Widow Yellowjacket live in Washington?

Same genus: Vespula

The closest relatives of the Widow Yellowjacket that you can see in Washington (genus Vespula, Ground Yellowjackets) are Eastern Yellowjacket (about 20%) and Southern Yellowjacket (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Widow Yellowjacket sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Widow Yellowjacket is recorded against all the insects logged in Washington (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.

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