IDENTIFYING BEES & WASPS

How To Identify Bees, Hornets, and Wasps

Awesome Bees is ready to help you remove or relocate beehives and wasp nests. But in case you are wondering about the difference between a bee, wasp, or hornet, look no further. Read further below to see if you can spot the difference.

Bees and wasps have a general body make-up that is similar. They have several main parts including the head, thorax, and abdomen. 

  • The head consists of eyes, antenna, and feeding parts.
  • The thorax consists of a pair of wings and six legs.
  • The abdomen consists of the stinger and the reproductive organs.
Honeybee Brown-Eyed — Bee Removal in Los Angeles, CA

Honey Bees

Honey bees are important insects because they produce and store honey. Honey has great benefits like countering pollen allergies, antioxidants, aids with coughing, assists with sleeping, and many more.

They are oval-shaped and are golden-yellow with brown stripes around their hairy bodies. Some honey bees are mostly black but still have noticeable dark-to-light coloring. They are usually smaller than wasps.

Honey bees build their hives from wax. The hives can be identified by their six-sided tubes. The tubes are used to store honey.
Giant Hornet — Bee Removal in Los Angeles, CA

Honey Bees

Hornets are similar to wasps but are larger and more aggressive. They tend to be reddish-brown in color and measure about 1 to 1.5 inches long.

Hornets like to build their nests in attics, walls, porches, and hollow trees. The nests are built from wood fibers and saliva and look like paper.
Yellowjacket — Bee Removal in Los Angeles, CA

Yellowjackets

Yellowjackets are easy to identify because of their yellow and black striping around their cone-shaped abdomen. They are roughly a half inch long and have narrow waists with smooth, hairless bodies. Yellowjacket wings are about as long as their bodies.

Yellowjackets tend to build their nests in walls and attics. Their nests look like a paper material. Some yellowjackets will build their nests in bushes or branches. They can often be found around picnics or patios because they are attracted to food and open trash cans.
Wasp — Bee Removal in Los Angeles, CA

Wasps

The appearance of wasps can vary depending on their species, but they tend to have pinched waists and their colors can range from black to blue and metallic green. They can be very tiny to several centimeters long.

Wasps like to build their nests in gutters, eaves, and soffits. They tend to be around human areas where food crumbs and sweet liquids are found.
Call Awesome Bees at (323) 753-7265 to schedule a service appointment to remove any bee hives or wasp nests.
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