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Animal profile

Common Yellowjacket

Vespula vulgaris

InsectaWoodland, grassland, gardens and urban areas, nesting underground or in cavities in walls and lofts

Field profile

The common yellowjacket is a social wasp that builds an enclosed paper nest around horizontal combs. A single queen founds each colony in spring and worker numbers peak in late summer. Workers hunt insects for the brood and take sugars for themselves.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2025-02-06

Common Yellowjacket

Yellowjackets turn to sugar when the brood stops

Through summer workers hunt protein for larvae and are paid in sugary larval secretions. When the queen stops laying in late season that exchange ends, and hungry workers go looking for sweetness at picnics and orchards.

Read with evidence →

Common Yellowjacket | Daily Animal Facts