Polistes biglumis
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
Polistes biglumis is a species of social wasp within Polistes, the most common genus of paper wasp. It is distinguished mainly by its tendency to reside in montane climates in meadows or alpine areas. Selection pressure from the wasp's environment has led to several idiosyncrasies of its behavior and lifecycle with respect to its relative species in the genus Polistes. It alone among paper wasps is often polyandrous. In addition, it has a truncated nesting season that gives rise to unique competitive dynamics among females of the species. P. biglumis wasps use an odor-based recognition system that is the basis for all wasp-to-wasp interaction of the species. The wasp's lifecycle is highly intertwined with that of Polistes atrimandibularis, an obligate social parasite wasp that frequently invades the combs of P. biglumis wasps.
Swedish zoologist Carl Linnaeus described Polistes biglumis in 1758. Its species name biglumis is a Latin phrase meaning "two husks." While no common name for the wasp exists in English, it is referred to as berg Feldwespe in German (meaning "mountain field wasp"). P. biglumis has been studied alongside Polistes snelleni and Polistes... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vanoise National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 2 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Polistes biglumis sighting in Vanoise National Park on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 220th most-seen of the 308 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Polistes biglumis in Vanoise National Park on a given day, against under 5% in September to June, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Polistes biglumis 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 Polistes biglumis sightings, Vanoise National Park has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Pyrénées National Park (France, under 5%).
Same order: Hymenoptera
The closest relatives of the Polistes biglumis that you can see in Vanoise National Park (order Hymenoptera, Ants, Bees, Wasps, and Sawflies) are Large Velvet Ant (about 20%), Early Bumble Bee (about 10%) and Brown-Black Carpenter Ant (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Polistes biglumis is recorded against all the insects logged in Vanoise National Park (6 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.
