Polistes carolina
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Polistes carolina is one of two species of red paper wasp found in the eastern United States (the other being Polistes rubiginosus) and is noted for the finer ridges on its propodeum. It is a social wasp in the family Vespidae and subfamily Polistinae. The species is native to the United States from Texas to Florida, north to New York, and west to Nebraska. The wasp's common name is due to the reddish-brown color of its head and body. P. carolina prefer to build their nests in protected spaces.
The first description of Polistes carolina appears in the first volume of Carl Linnaeus' 12th edition of Systema Naturae published in 1767. In this volume, he referred to the species as Vespa carolina. Henri Louis Frédéric de Saussure later moved it to the genus Polistes in 1855 after Pierre Andre Latreille coined the new genus in 1802. P. carolina is within the family Vespidae, which includes nearly all of the eusocial wasps and many of the solitary wasps. It is further placed within the subfamily Polistinae (paper wasps), which is the second-largest of the subfamilies within the Vespidae. The Polistinae contain two main behavioral groups: swarm founding, involving... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Everglades National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | San Antonio | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Dallas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Houston | 🇺🇸 United States |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Fine-Backed Red Paper Wasp sighting in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, based on 10 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 441st most-seen of the 822 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July and October–November
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Fine-Backed Red Paper Wasp in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August–September and December–June, the lowest months.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Fine-Backed Red Paper Wasp sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Fine-Backed Red Paper Wasp sightings, Great Smoky Mountains National Park has the highest daily chance: under 5%. Next come Everglades National Park (United States, under 5%).
Same genus: Polistes
The closest relatives of the Fine-Backed Red Paper Wasp that you can see in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (genus Polistes, Umbrella Paper Wasps) are Metric Paper Wasp (about 10%), Northern Paper Wasp (about 10%) and Guinea Paper Wasp (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Fine-Backed Red Paper Wasp is recorded against all the insects logged in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (10 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.
