Characteristics of common wasps and bees

Template:Short description While observers can easily confuse common wasps and bees at a distance or without close observation, there are many different characteristics of large bees and wasps that can be used to identify them.

Characteristics

Template:Nbsp	Bees (Family: Apidae)		Wasps (Family: Vespidae)
Name	Western honey bee	Bumblebee	Paper wasp	Yellowjacket	Bald-faced hornet	European hornet	Asian hornet
Image	File:Apis mellifera Female on white background.jpg	File:Bombus fraternus, f, ga, baker, side (16429111109) -white background.jpg	File:Polistes dominula MHNT.jpg	File:European wasp white bg.jpg	File:Bald-faced Hornet (Vespidae, Dolichovespula maculata (Linnaeus)) (32512319833) white background.jpg	File:AD2009Aug08 Vespa crabro 01.jpg	File:Fondatrice de Vespa vélutina.png
Colors	Amber to brown translucent alternating with black stripes.Template:Efn Exact pattern and colouration varies depending on strain/breed.	Yellow with black stripes, sometimes with olive, brown, orange-brown, red, white, or as in Bombus pratorum, dark.	Dusty yellow to dark brown or black	Black and opaque bright yellow stripes	Black and ivory white markings	Black and dark body with yellowTemplate:Efn	Black and orange or yellow markings
Coat	Furry (short hair)	Furry (long hair)	Little or no hair			Some hair
Size	Template:Cvt	Template:Cvt or more	Template:Cvt	Template:Cvt	Up to Template:Cvt	Up to Template:Cvt	Up to Template:Cvt
Legs	Not generally visible while flyingTemplate:Efn		Two thin long legs are visible hanging down during flight. There are no pollen baskets.	Legs not generally visible in flight. There are no pollen baskets.
Behavior	GentleTemplate:Efn	Gentle	Not aggressive	DefensiveTemplate:Efn
Food	Pollen and nectar from flowers		Other insects as larvae, sugary liquids such as nectar as adults	Other insects, overripe fruit, sugary drinks, human food and food waste, meatTemplate:Efn	Other insects as larvae, sugary liquids such as nectar as adults
Sting	Barbed. Kills bee;Template:Efn continues pumping.	Smooth; can repeat. Retracts.
Sting Pain	2	2	1.5–3 depending on species	2 (Vespula pensylvanica)	2	2.x	4.0+
Lights	Not attracted to lights at night unless nest is disturbed, or light is placed near hive, or bee is sick.		Attracted to lights at night
Lives in	Large colonies of flat, wax-based honeycomb hanging vertically.	Small cavities in the soil or sometime above ground in dark cavities. Commonly uses small rodent nests, may use bird cavity nests.	Small umbrella-shaped papery combs hanging horizontally in protected spaces such as attics, eaves or soil cavities.	Large paper nest, upside down pear shaped, hanging from branches and eaves; also barns and attics. Some yellowjacket species nest in the ground.		Very large paper nest in hollow trees, sheltered positions. Has a brown, protective layer when the nest is in an unsheltered position. Also found in barns, attics, hollow walls and abandoned bee hives.

See also

• Schmidt sting pain index

External links

• What's Buzzin' in My Garden?
• Differences between wasps and bees poster