Petersburgh Worker

This Widow Yellowjacket (Vespula vidua) was found in Petersburgh on common milkweed. These insects primarily live in the northeastern U.S. and adjoining Canada, and build papery nests started by the queen.

As workers are produced, they assume the task of building the nest. This yellowjacket is a worker that will not survive the winter, although the queen will. Yellowjackets are beneficial in that they kill garden pests. They will sting humans if they threaten nests that can be built underground.