This queen was originally identified as "Vespula (D) norvegicoides" by J. R. McGillis in 1955. It was reexamined by the famous vespidologist Micheal Archer in 1991 who determined this queen as D. alpicola. There has been much confusion about the identification of D. alpicola but the keys and remarks in Archer (1992) "New information about Dolichovespula" prove to be highly useful in determining this species. Here is a link to the paper by Archer (1992): http://www.academia.edu/7174609/Archer_1992b_New_information_about_Dolichovespula_Hymenoptera_Vespinae_