Vespa simillima

Vespa simillima
Vespa simillima
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Vespidae
Genus: Vespa
Species:
V. simillima
Binomial name
Vespa simillima
Smith, 1868
Synonyms
  • Vespa mongolica André 1884
  • Vespa micado Cameron 1903
  • Vespa xanthoptera Cameron 1903
  • Vespa Mongolica var. sexpunctata Pérez 1905
  • Vespa Mongolica var. flavata Pérez 1910

Vespa simillima, the yellow hornet, including the color form known as the Japanese hornet or Japanese yellow hornet (キイロスズメバチ), is a common hornet species in the Eastern Hemisphere. The typical mainland color form (Japanese:ケブカスズメバチ, Korean: 털보말벌, "hairy wasp") is darker and hairier than the yellow form; it lives in Hokkaido, the Korean Peninsula, Eastern Siberia and China, but is less common in Japan, where the yellow color form predominates. It should not be confused with the Asian giant hornet (Vespa mandarinia), which has a color form sometimes referred to as the "Japanese giant hornet". While there is a history of recognizing subspecies within many hornets, the most recent taxonomic revision treats all subspecific names in the genus Vespa as synonyms, effectively relegating them to no more than informal names for regional color forms.[1]

  1. ^ A.H. Smith-Pardo, J.M. Carpenter, L. Kimsey (2020) The diversity of hornets in the genus Vespa (Hymenoptera: Vespidae; Vespinae), their importance and interceptions in the United States. Insect Systematics and Diversity 4(3) https://doi.org/10.1093/isd/ixaa006