Back to Wasps & Yellowjackets

European Paper Wasp

Polistes dominula

European paper wasp showing its orange antennae

A frequent neighbor around buildings, with a slender waist, long legs, and orange antennae. Its open paper comb exposes the cells. It hunts caterpillars but can sting when the nest is disturbed.

Look at the nest, too

Long legs and orange antennae help distinguish this slender wasp from a yellowjacket. Its nest is an open comb: the individual cells are visible from below rather than hidden inside a paper envelope.

An introduced neighbor

This paper wasp is non-native in the Pacific Northwest. It still hunts insects, including caterpillars, to feed its growing larvae. Origin and ecological role are different parts of its story.

Colony life

Adults bring repeated meals to developing larvae in the shared nest. A nest near a doorway deserves particular attention because frequent close encounters can lead to defensive stings.

Advice for sharing space with wasps

Learn More

Read the university identification and biology guide

Explore WSU’s regional colony lifecycle (PDF, 2003)

Read OSU’s guide to wasp diversity and native status (PDF)

Photograph & license

European Paper Wasp — Alvesgaspar. CC BY-SA 3.0. Resized and converted to WebP.

The photograph illustrates this species or group; it was not necessarily taken in Oregon.

Solitary wasp

A solitary wasp has no colony of workers helping raise her young. A female may stock her own nest cells with food, or find a host for her developing offspring. Solitary describes social life; parasitoid describes a feeding strategy. A wasp can be both.

Social wasp

Social wasps share a nest and cooperate in raising young. In yellowjacket and paper wasp colonies, reproductive females lay eggs and workers help feed the brood and maintain the nest. They can defend that nest, so observing a forager is different from approaching a colony.

Non-native Social wasp

This is a social wasp introduced beyond its natural range. In this case the European paper wasp was introduced to North America from Europe, probably hidden in shipping materials. Non-native describes its origin, while social describes colony life.