Hobbies And Interests
Instructions
Notice the color. While familiar honeybees display a muted brown and yellow color, markings on hornets and wasps are somewhat more vivid. According to The Bee Wrangler, hornets are typically black with bright yellow stripes (like the yellow jacket and bald hornets). Wasps might also be black, but they are usually brown or red.
Notice the shape. Wasps and hornets resemble flying versions of ants, with segmented bodies and a long, aerodynamic shape. Wasps also might have long legs that dangle below them, creating a distinctive shape different from hornets or bees.
Notice the wings. Wasps and hornets have long, slender wings that appear in stark contrast to the wide, flat wings of a bee.
Look at the nest. Bees create large, complex nests with a honeycomb structure, but wasps and hornets typically create much simpler structures. Mud dauber wasps, for example, create small nests that resemble patches of mud on the side of a home. Some wasps and hornets simply burrow into cracks in wood or brick to create their homes inside.
Look for a swarm. According to Hampshire Wasp Control in Hampshire, England, wasps and hornets do not swarm. If flying insects that resemble wasps and hornets are assembled in a swarm, they are likely some variety of bee rather than a wasp or hornet.
Examine the insect after a sting. Although bees lose their stinger and die shortly after delivering a sting, wasps and hornets possess a straight stinger that they can withdraw to use multiple times.