Wasps of Oklahoma

Yellowjackets

• Yellowjackets are a species of wasp found in Oklahoma that takes their name from the black and yellow bands on their abdomen. The typical yellowjacket is between ½ inch and ¾ inch long. In Oklahoma, three kinds of yellowjackets exist: the eastern yellowjacket, the southern yellowjacket and the bald-faced hornet, which lacks the yellow and black colors but has a white area on the head.

  Yellowjackets construct large nests. The bald-faced hornets making a nest above ground in a tree or on a structure such as a building. The other two types compose nests underground or in a hollow log, the inside of a wall or other similar protected area.

  Eastern and southern yellowjackets may have as many as 5,000 wasps in one colony, with bald-faced hornets living in their nest in numbers between 200 and 700 wasps. These types of wasps are more aggressive than many other kinds because of their numbers. Yellowjackets do not lose their stinger after stinging and thus have the ability to keep stinging during an attack. The yellowjacket's diet consists of insects as well as whatever protein and sugar it may find in places like garbage cans and picnic areas.

Mud-daubers

• The mud-dauber is a wasp species of Oklahoma typically found in attics, on porches and in other structures. The mud-dauber builds a nest out of mud that it adheres to eaves, crossbeams and other places where it has protection from the sun and rain. You will see this wasp near the edge of a pond or lake, on a newly wet lawn or even near an outside water faucet, where it will collect mud for building purposes. Mud daubers are around ¾ inch in length and have a noticeably slender waist area where the lower abdomen connects to the middle thorax region. Mud-daubers are yellowish and black in color. They consume a diet of spiders and are no threat to people, although they sometimes will build a nest in machinery left outside, causing mechanical problems.

Cicada Killer

• Oklahoma's cicada killer wasp is as long as an inch and a half, making it twice as large as a yellowjacket. Cicada killers possess black bodies with the same yellow bands that their cousins have. Cicada killers, as the name implies, feast on cicadas, stinging the insect and then bringing it to their underground nest to eat. Soil around a small hole on your lawn is a good indicator of a cicada killer's nest. The cicada killer does not live in colonies of multiple wasps but can dig their nests in close to each other. This Oklahoma wasp only stings when you handle it, with most instances of stinging occurring when people step on them on a lawn setting while barefoot.