Inside an Abandoned Yellowjacket Nest: Structure and Life Cycle

Q: I dug up yellow jacket nests after killing them, but they usually get torn up. A friend sent this picture of a nest under an AC unit. They didn't see insects and weren't sure what kind of nest it was.

What an awesome picture! It's an abandoned yellowjacket nest.

Yellowjackets build annual nests; all workers die in late fall. Surviving queens overwinter in rotten logs. They emerge in spring and seek protected places to build—like under an AC unit.

Notice the large main entrance on the lower center and secondary entrance on the upper right.

This would be a prize exhibit in an elementary school classroom!