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Photo#11081
Southern Yellow Jacket - Vespula squamosa - female

Southern Yellow Jacket - Vespula squamosa - Female
Fort Bragg, Cumberland County, North Carolina, USA
April 24, 2004
Just like photo so I assume this is also a queen.

Yes.
Both images are of queens. This species is a facultative social parasite on Vespula maculifrons. That means that colonies of the southern yellow jacket (V. squamosa) can either be free-living, or a queen can simply take over a young V. maculifrons nest by killing the resident queen and forcing the workers to raise her offspring instead.

 
Moved to Guide
Thanks, Lynette & Eric.

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