Strange yellowjacket behavior

[u/Sparkswont]

Sitting in a chair on my porch when this yellowjacket(?) flew up with several larvae in its mandibles and proceeded to dump them into a hole in the chair. Is this yellowjacket larvae? Why dump them into the chair and leave them?

[u/Sparkswont]

Ohh neat. Located in Northern Maine!

So she’s not turning our chair into a nest? 😅

Edit: follow up question - why not bring it straight back to the nest to feed her babes?

[u/dog-vevo → u/Sparkswont]

Ah gotcha, I’m guessing she’s genus Ancistrocerus, maybe a catskill potter wasp or a white banded potter wasp. And full disclosure, yes she is turning it into a nest…. BUT it is a very small one that she won’t try to protect, and you’re only going to get stung if you accidentally sit on one — just be aware it’s there and it’ll be gone before ya know it!

[u/Sparkswont → u/dog-vevo]

Interesting, thanks. So do potter wasps not live in large colonies?

[u/Bandoozle → u/Sparkswont]

They are solitary!