The German wasp, or European wasp, Vespula germanica, is a wasp found in much of the Northern Hemisphere, native to Europe, northern Africa, and temperate Asia. It has been introduced and is well-established in many other places, including North America, Australia and New Zealand. German wasps are part of the family Vespidae and are sometimes mistakenly referred to as paper wasps because they build a grey paper nest although, strictly speaking, paper wasps are part of the subfamily Polistinae. It is more commonly known in North America as a yellowjacket.
The German wasp is about 13 mm long, and has typical wasp colours of black and yellow. It is very similar to the common wasp (Vespula vulgaris), but seen head on, its face has three tiny black dots. German wasps also have black dots on their abdomen, while the common wasp's analogous markings are fused with the black rings above them, forming a different pattern.
The nest is made from chewed plant fibres, mixed with saliva. They are generally found close to or in the ground, rather than higher up on bushes and trees like hornets. It has open cells and a petiole attaching the nest to the substrate. The wasps produce a chemical which repels ants, and secrete it around the base of this petiole in order to avoid ant predation.
