Honey beeWasps, ants, and bees all belong to the Order Hymenoptera. Most of them lead solitary lives and do not sting. Most are beneficial in that they feed on pest insects and spiders. We generally associate these insects with painful stings. The stinger is simply a modified ovipositor (egg laying tube). Being stung by a wasp or bee usually only causes localized pain. In some cases, though, people have allergic reactions that can be life threatening. Most of the time these insects do not seek out humans or pets to sting. They attack only if provoked.
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The majority of images in this site are from the Key Gray collection at Oregon State University. The remainder are from the UI slide archives unless noted by individual photos.
Honey bee
Honeybees are the most easily recognized bee. They pollinate over 300 crops and provide us with honey and other products. Their social lifestyle and organization of labor have made them very successful.
Alfalfa leafcutter bee
Many kinds of leafcutter bees exist in the wild. They line their nest with cuttings of leaves and flower petals and lay eggs on pollen balls inside the cell. This alfalfa leafcutter bee has been developed for commercial uses but can often be found living in and around Idaho homes.
Bumblebee
Bumblebees are large black bees with yellow hairs on their abdomen or thorax. They are important pollinators of clover and nest in old rodent burrows. They develop small colonies during the summer but only mated new queens overwinter.
Carpenter bee
Carpenter bees resemble bumblebees but do not have the yellow hairs and the top of the abdomen is usually bare. They are blue-black in color with green or purple iridescence. They make their nests in dry wood and can cause some damage to poles or other structures. Most of the time their nests go unnoticed.
Carpenter ant
Carpenter ants are common in Idaho because they normally live in and help break down dead trees in the forest. They can invade homes, however, and make nests in boards that are in poor condition or wet. They can be found foraging for food in the kitchen. Sometimes a satellite nest is started in the house with the main nest still outside.
Pavement ant
Pavement ants are representative of the ants that invade our houses on a regular basis. They can nest either inside or outside the house and can be difficult to eliminate from the house. Most of the time they nest outside and come in the house looking for food. Denying entry into the house and outside controls can minimize aggravation by these ants.
Harvester ant
Harvester ants generally live in the deserts and harvest seeds etc for food. They get into houses when we move out to where they live. Mating swarms like to congregate on prominent places and these often include chimneys and tall houses in desert situation.
Velvet ant
Velvet ants are actually wasps. Adult females are wingless and can be found scurrying around dry washes, etc. The backs of these insects are covered with brightly colored long hairs. Red, orange, yellow, white are common colors.
Polistes wasp
Polistes wasps can be aggressive and often make nests under eaves of houses where people walk. Mated queens overwinter in protected places. If they end up in the roof or walls of houses, they can come out into the house anytime during the winter.
Polistes wasp nest
Nests of Polistes are flat with exposed combs on the bottom. Queens start new nests each year and the nests are abandoned in the fall.
Yellowjacket
Yellowjackets are stout, robust, and usually yellow and black. They nest in the ground or in attics and house voids. If disturbed, they can be quite aggressive and give chase for quite a distance. They can sting multiple times and stings are quite painful.
Yellowjacket nest
Like Polistes, yellowjacket queens start new nests and colonies every year. They can grow quite large but the colonies die out each fall.
Baldfaced hornet
Baldfaced hornets are actually a type of yellowjacket. They are not very aggressive and can have a nest close to where people are all summer without being discovered or being a nuisance.
Baldfaced hornet nest
Nest of baldfaced hornets can be quite spectacular depending on the wood used to make them. Full sized nests are about the size of a basketball. Inside are many layers of brood combs. Trees are the preferred location for these nests.
Cicada killer
The giant cicada killer, or giant sand wasp, provisions it underground nest with cicadas. They are ominous looking but generally not aggressive. They are solitary wasps and provision single nests for their brood.
Mud Dauber
Mud daubers represent many solitary wasps that provision nests either above or below ground. Their prey consists of spiders, caterpillars, or other insects. Sometimes each species is quite specific for the kind of prey they capture.
Mud dauber nest
A typical mud dauber nest. They can be found on the walls of homes as well as in barbecue grills, old toys left outside, and other similar places.