Dolichovespula arenaria
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~50%
Dolichovespula arenaria, also known as the common aerial yellowjacket (common aerial yellow jacket), sandhills hornet, and common yellow hornet, is a species of wasp within the genus Dolichovespula widely distributed in the North American continent.
The genus Dolichovespula is in the family Vespidae. In North America, the genus is referred to as yellowjackets. Worldwide, the genus has 18 species, including D. arenaria and other species such as D. albida, D. alpicola, D. saxonica, and D. maculata.
D. arenaria can be identified by the medially interrupted or incised apical fasciae of terga 1 and 2. They are yellow in color and can be differentiated from the other yellow-colored wasps, such as D. adulterina, in its genus by the lack of black markings in the ocular sinus.
In the majority of the population, the ocular sinus is yellow, but some melanic males have a black area that reaches the lower margin of the sinus. The queen has large black discal spots on terga 4 and 5, and smaller ones on terga 2 and 3.
Males can be identified by the larger antenna, spots on their basal band on terga 4 and 5 as well as an abdomen that ends with a flat... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pacific Rim National Park Reserve | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Gros Morne National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 3 | Elk Island National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 4 | Denali National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Great Bear Rainforest | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | Cape Breton Highlands National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 7 | Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Acadia National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Glacier National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 11 | Grand Teton National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 12 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 13 | Rocky Mountain National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 14 | Yosemite National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 15 | Olympic National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 16 | Yellowstone National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anchorage | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Boston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 4 | Montreal | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 5 | Edmonton | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | Calgary | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 7 | Minneapolis [Saint Paul] | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Vancouver | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 9 | San Francisco | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Seattle | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Common Aerial Yellowjacket sighting in Glacier National Park on a given day, based on 14 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 60th most-seen of the 147 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May and July–September
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Common Aerial Yellowjacket in Glacier National Park on a given day, against under 5% in June and October–April, the lowest months.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Common Aerial 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.
Among the best
Of the 16 parks where we can rate Common Aerial Yellowjacket sightings, Glacier National Park ranks 10th at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve (Canada, about 10%), Gros Morne National Park (Canada, about 10%) and Elk Island National Park (Canada, about 10%).
Same genus: Dolichovespula
The closest relatives of the Common Aerial Yellowjacket that you can see in Glacier National Park (genus Dolichovespula, Aerial Yellowjackets) are Bald-Faced Hornet (about 10%) and Dolichovespula adulterina (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Common Aerial Yellowjacket is recorded against all the insects logged in Glacier National Park (14 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
