
European Hornet - side view, Heesch, Netherlands
An impressively sized insect. This is basically our pet hornet. It is nesting right above our office window in a gap between bricks. All day long it's making trips from the nest to the roof of one of our bird feeders. The roof consists of soft rotten reed which the hornet collects for nest building. I just generally let it be. On this day I was lucky to find it in a calm and approachable mood.

The European hornet is the largest eusocial wasp native to Europe. It is also the only true hornet found in North America, having been introduced to the United States and Canada from Europe as early as 1840. Vespines, such as "V. crabro", are known for making intricate paper-like nests out of surrounding plant materials and other fibers.