Characteristics of common wasps and bees explained

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

	Bees (Family: Apidae)		Wasps (Family: Vespidae)
Name	Western honey bee	Bumblebee	Paper wasp	Yellowjacket	Bald-faced hornet	European hornet	Asian hornet
Image
Colors	Amber to brown translucent alternating with black stripes. Exact pattern and colouration varies depending on strain/breed.	Yellow with black stripes, sometimes with olive, brown, orange-brown, red,^[1] white, or as in Bombus pratorum, dark.^[2]	Dusty yellow to dark brown or black	Black and opaque bright yellow stripes	Black and ivory white markings	Black and dark body with yellow	Black and orange or yellow markings
Coat	Furry (short hair)	Furry (long hair)	Little or no hair			Some hair
Size		or more			Up to	Up to	Up to
Legs	Not generally visible while flying		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	Gentle	Gentle	Not aggressive	Defensive
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, meat	Other insects as larvae, sugary liquids such as nectar as adults
Sting	Barbed. Kills bee; continues pumping.	Smooth; can repeat. Retracts.
Sting Pain^[3]	2	2	1.5–3 depending on species	2 (Vespula pensylvanica)	2	2.x	4.0+^[4]
Lights	Not attracted to lights at night unless nest is disturbed, or light is placed near hive, or bee is sick.^[5]		Attracted to lights at night^[6] ^[7]
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

Further reading

• Book: Hymenoptera: evolution, biodiversity and biological control. limited. Andrew D. Austin . Mark Dowton . Csiro Publishing. 2000. 978-0-643-06610-6. N. R. Levick . J. O. Schmidt . J. Harrison . G. S. Smith . K. D. Winkel . Review of bee and wasp sting injuries in Australia and the U.S.A. § Bees versus wasps: Appearance, Behaviour, and Venom chemistry. 439 - 440.
• Book: A Colour guide to dangerous animals. P. Gopalakrishnakone. NUS Press. 1990. 978-9971-69-150-9. Differences between wasps and bees. 47.
• Book: Bee · Wasp · Hornet · Ant. How to tell a turtle from a tortoise: a close look at nature's most confusing terms. Philip B. Mortenson. Barnes & Noble. 2008. 978-0-7607-9002-1. registration.
• Book: Small animal toxicology. Michael Edward Peterson . Patricia A. Talcott . 2nd. Elsevier Health Sciences. 2006. 978-0-7216-0639-2. Insects - Hymenoptera. Kevin T. Fitzgerald . Rebecca Vera .

External links

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

Notes and References

1. Web site: Bumble Bees . Natural History Museum.
2. Benton, Ted (2006). "Chapter 9: The British Species". Bumblebees. London, UK: HarperCollins Publishers. pp. 338–342.
3. Unless otherwise noted, sting pains are from The sting of the Wild by Justin O. Schmidt. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore 2006, pp.226-229
4. Web site: Vespa mandarinia Smith, 1852.
5. Bees aren't generally active at night, as their bodies aren't able to withstand colder temperatures as easily as wasps' bodies are.
6. Web site: Non-Honey Bee Stinging Insects in North Carolina . NC State Extension Publications . NC State University . 3 September 2018.
7. Web site: Lawrence . Neil . Pest Control Advice - Wasps . www.oxford.gov.uk . Oxford City Council . 3 September 2018 . en.