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Photo#29776
Looks like Bald Faced Hornet but! - Dolichovespula maculata - male

Looks like Bald Faced Hornet but! - Dolichovespula maculata - Male
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
August 11, 2005
I thought this was the same species (Bald faced hornet) that I had posted a few days ago. Today I noticed that it has an extra white band and wondered if this was something a little different. ID and any info would be appreciated. Thanks

Male Dolichovespula maculata
Yes, males of the baldfaced hornet occasionally have this extra white band of T-1. I have never seen a worker or queen with this marking. A couple specimens I have show a slight trace of a band on T-2, but in each case the bands are much more developed on T-1 and on T-3 through T-7. The only specimens having large bands on each tergite, including T-2, are probably victims of chilling or other misfortune during development (as evidenced by their deformed wings!).

By the way, this species occasionally has thoracic stripes suggestive of those of Vespula squamosa.

Bald Faced Hornet (Dolichovespula maculata) - male
Indeed a color variant of this species, in that the apical band on the 1st (uro)tergite is especially broad. Most often there are only two faint, whitish stripes at the same place, just like here on the 3rd tergite - this latter having, generally, only small lateral spots. Note that only males can have such a special, somewhat confusing, color pattern. But, the 2nd tergite always remains all black, which occurs in no other species (V. consobrina. D. arctica, both being likely to occur in your region).

 
Hornet ID
Thank you for the info. Richard, it is appreciated.

Male.
Might well be a variant of a bald-faced hornet, but it could also be a male blackjacket, Vespula consobrina. Male in any case.

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