Yellow Jackets

• Yellow jackets fall into the social wasp category. They are identified with the yellow and black body markings (stripes), similar to a honey bee. They tend to be on the small side, ranging from one-half to three-quarters of an inch long. Yellow jackets eat other insects, but are known for their affinity for sugar and protein, often showing up at picnics and barbeques, especially in late summer.
  
  

Mud Daubers

• Mud daubers can be identified in two ways: their waists are extremely slender, looking thread-like, and their nests are made of mud. These wasps fall into the solitary category, and range between three-quarter and one inch long. They come in a variety of colors, including flat black, iridescent blue-black and yellow. Because they are solitary, are not aggressive and feed spiders to their young, they are often considered helpful with pest control.
  
  

Paper Wasps

• Paper wasps are called so because of their use of dead wood and plant fiber to make their nests. These plant and wood fibers are mixed with wasp saliva to form a nest that is often shaped like an upside down umbrella, giving these wasps their other name, umbrella wasps. Categorized as social wasps, they range from one-half to one-and-a-quarter inches in length. These insects are also considered beneficial for pest control, particularly around gardens; paper wasps love to eat caterpillars.
  
  

Hornets

• Hornets are a type of social wasp. Larger than most species of wasps, their sting is also more painful. Hornets can reach up to two and three inches in length. This type of wasp can get extremely aggressive when its nest is disturbed, making them more dangerous than other wasps. They, like paper wasps, use dead wood and plant fiber to make their nests. However, their nests are contained with only one entrance (while paper wasp nests have multiple openings for access), and the construction of the nest leaves a striped pattern wrapping around it.