CLOSED: Hornet Vespa crabro, but which one?

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wallaby1 Lincoln, United Kingdom(Zone 8a) Jun 06, 2007

http://davesgarden.com/bf/go/2058/

The entry is for Giant hornet, Vespa crabro germana.

This appears to be a subspecies introduced to Eastern North America

http://bugguide.net/node/view/7230

David Element lists simply Hornet Vespa crabro

http://www.david.element.ukgateway.net/hymenoptera2socialwasps1.htm

But there are several subspecies, and mine would not belong in the subspecies 'germana' entry, or would it?

http://www.vespa-crabro.de/hornets.htm

Do we need an entry for just 'Hornet Vespa crabro'?

It was last year when my grapes were ripening I first saw two of them, late October, they were huge and scary!



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wallaby1 Lincoln, United Kingdom(Zone 8a) Jun 06, 2007

The pretty face

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kennedyh Churchill, Victoria, Australia(Zone 10a) Jun 06, 2007

I have no idea how to tell whether yours is V c germanica, but we do have an entry already for plain Vespa crabo and would be pleased to have your images added there,

Ken

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wallaby1 Lincoln, United Kingdom(Zone 8a) Jun 06, 2007

I see the entry now, don't know how I missed it as it's above the other one! I think I saw the picture which didn't look like a big one, and I was up very late! The confusion of subspecies got my attention........

Thanks ken, will add it to that one then!

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wallaby1 Lincoln, United Kingdom(Zone 8a) Jun 06, 2007

Now I'm going to be a real pain!

I searched for subsp. 'vexator' and mine seems to be that one.

This shows the head with yellow, and the reddish band on the second body section, mine has both.

http://www.muenster.org/hornissenschutz/hornet_vespa_crabro_vexator.htm

http://aolsearch.aol.co.uk/aol/image?invocationType=topsearchbox.image&query=%27vespa+crabro+vexator%27

This one in BF doesn't have either of those distinguishing marks.

http://davesgarden.com/bf/showimage/1798/

In view of this, and we already have a subspecies 'germana' in BF, then shouldn't we also have a subspecies 'vexator'? My pics can go there!

It stated on the muenster.org site that the New Forest in Hampshire is probably their last stronghold.

They are on the increase as many insects were in the hot summer of 2006.


Geographic colour forms as listed on Wikipedia.org:

European hornets worldwide are found with geographic colour forms]:

Vespa crabro crabro Linnaeus, 1758
Vespa crabro vexator Harris, 1776
Vespa crabro germana Christ, 1791
Vespa crabro crabroniformis Smith, 1852
Vespa crabro borealis Radoszkowski, 1863
Vespa crabro oberthuri du Buysson, 1902
Vespa crabro flavofasciata Cameron, 1903
Vespa crabro altaica Pérez, 1910
Vespa crabro caspica Pérez, 1910
Vespa crabro chinensis Birula, 1925


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kennedyh Churchill, Victoria, Australia(Zone 10a) Jun 06, 2007

That all makes sense, so I have created a new entry for "Vespa crabro vexator" here: http://davesgarden.com/bf/go/4684/
and it awaits your images,

Ken

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wallaby1 Lincoln, United Kingdom(Zone 8a) Jun 06, 2007

Thanks!

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