I went up to the Bulkley Valley last week to visit my parents and came across this Hornet's nest under construction. It's not far under way; that region has had a cool, wet summer too, and everything is about a month behind where it usually is. Looks like the Queen Hornet is working by herself. I didn't see much activity, although Hornet's nests don't get too populated anyhow. She is black with a white-tipped tail. Unfortunately, I didn't get a good photo of her. She is back-lit. Plus, I didn't want to get too close to her and risk getting stung. I was surprised by her location for this home: a low-hanging branch of an apple tree. It is totally exposed to the elements and swings in the wind. Wasps and Hornets often pick a more sheltered location.
Technically a species of yellowjacket wasp, it is not one of the true hornets, which are in the genus Vespa. Colonies contain 400 to 700 workers, the largest recorded colony size in its genus, Dolichovespula.[1] It builds a characteristic large hanging paper nest up to 58 cm (23 in) in length Dolichovespula maculata - Wikipedia
