CLOSED: European Hornet, I think!

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Bob_71 Severna Park, MD(Zone 7a) Jan 01, 2011

Need confirmation on this one...my record at identifying has not been very good.

Bob

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Bob_71 Severna Park, MD(Zone 7a) Jan 01, 2011

I maintain rotting fruit for the various insects and for the butterflies that will feed from it, but WILL NOT feed from the nectar of plants. This particularly large hornet feeds 24/7 and the fermented liquids seem to intoxicate them to the point that they have difficulty flying. This one is eating from one of the Dole fruit cups.

Bob

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suunto Sinks Grove, WV Jan 01, 2011

This does indeed appear to be a European hornet (Vespa crabro) - see http://tinyurl.com/246g4xf
I have found these to be much less aggressive than the other social vespids (yellowjackets, bald-face 'hornets') in our area.

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Interlude Dowling Park, FL(Zone 8b) Jan 02, 2011

Bob, your pictures are spectacular. Please share your equipment, camera, lenses,etc. How much "enhancement" are you doing before posting?

Well done,
John

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Bob_71 Severna Park, MD(Zone 7a) Jan 02, 2011

Interlude...John, I really appreciate your kind comments! I use a Canon 40D DSLR with a 100mm f/2.8 macro lens almost exclusively. The main reason that I have a few good photos is that I shoot a heck of a lot of pictures (in excess of 12,000 shots last year-2010). I retired about 15 years ago so I have lots of time to devote to my garden. For years it consisted of about 200 roses but as the energy levels decreased, I gave those away and now nurture a butterfly and insect garden...they like weedy areas and I can accommodate them!

As for "enhancement", I use Photoshop CS2. Every photo I shoot is viewed on the monitor of my camera and about 50% are trashed at that point. Of the remaining, all are viewed in Photoshop, reviewed for EXPOSURE and corrected if necessary, and are sharpened (digital photography is, by nature a soft-focus medium and while the camera's internal software does some minimal sharpening when it saves to JPEG, most photos gain from a slight amount of added sharpening, in my personal opinion.). I shoot virtually everything at -2/3 EV and brighten a bit in Photoshop. I do not have the knowledge to make color corrections or any other extensive corrections...I leave that to my kids and grandkids. They bail me out when I get into trouble, which is often. In my opinion, the single greatest "enhancing" device I use is a good, sturdy tripod!!! I use it at all times..sometimes as a monopod, others as a bipod but when the insects allow it, I use it as a tripod! Basically, the colors of the photos are unenhanced except for the slight underexposure via EV setting and the choice of lighting situations when I go out to shoot.

Thanks again for asking.

Bob

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