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Social wasp (Agelaia) (Agelaia pallipes)
Wasp

Social wasp (Agelaia)

Agelaia pallipes
Photo: Gionorossi (CC BY-SA 4.0), Wikimedia Commons
Native to Central America·Native to South America
Medical importanceHornetAlert assessment
High caution
Type
Wasp
Where it’s found
Latin America

HornetAlert is not a medical service and this rating is not medical advice: it is our own editorial judgement of how much caution a species deserves, not a clinical assessment of any sting. If you have been stung and feel unwell, contact a doctor or your local emergency number.

How to recognize it

Small yellow-brown social wasp, colonies that can number in the tens of thousands.

Where it lives

Found across Central and South America, with large nests often hidden in vegetation.

Behavior toward humans

Very aggressive in defending the nest, with collective attacks from large numbers of individuals.

Where in the world

Where in the world…

Documented status by region

  • NativeCentral America
  • NativeSouth America

Lines run from the native region to regions where the species has since been recorded.

These are indicative regions, not range maps. Each block covers the whole named region, not the exact area where the species occurs — HornetAlert holds region-level status records, not distribution polygons.

Known range

Known range: Social wasp (Agelaia)
Range based on recorded GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility) occurrences: darker = more documented presence. Reflects where it has been observed and recorded, not necessarily every place the species actually lives.
Distribution and identification notes come from HornetAlert’s species data and recorded GBIF occurrences. Native and introduced status is region-specific. Observations are always distinguished from predictions.