Report a Yellow-Legged Hornet Nest

Why I am asking

The yellow-legged hornet (Vespa velutina) is an invasive species first found in Georgia in 2023. It preys on honey bees and other pollinators. Its nests hang high in trees and are hard to spot from the ground, which is exactly the problem my thesis works on.

1. You report a nest

Address or map pin, and a photo if it is safe to take one. Name and contact details are optional but let me follow up.

2. I get in touch first

If the site fits the study I will contact you before anything happens. No one visits or flies without your permission.

3. A short drone survey

A few minutes of photographs from the air (RGB and Thermal). The images train and test the detector. Nothing is sprayed and the nest is not touched.

Please also report every sighting to the Georgia Department of Agriculture, which handles removal: agr.georgia.gov/yellow-legged-hornet. Not sure it is a yellow-legged hornet? Send the photo anyway.

What to look for

Quick identification, based on the Georgia Department of Agriculture description.

The hornet

Dark body, legs partly or mostly yellow, orange-yellow face. Smaller than the European hornet, which is larger with more yellow and brown on the body.

The nest

Egg-shaped paper nest with a shell-like outside. Softball to watermelon size in early summer, larger than a basketball by late summer and fall, usually high in a tree.

Look-alikes

Bald-faced hornets build grey nests too but are black and white. Paper wasps build small open combs under eaves. If in doubt, report it and we will check.

Where we are looking

We are collecting leads around Kennesaw State University's Marietta campus and the wider metro Atlanta area. Highlighted cities are our main focus; the others are also welcome.

Not on the list but nearby? Report it anyway, the map below works for any address in Georgia.

Report a nest

Only the location is required. Everything else helps but is optional.

Your name (optional)

Phone or email (optional, so I can reach you)

When did you see it? (optional)

Anything else? (optional)

Photo of the nest or the hornet (optional, only if safe to take)

Where is the nest? * Type an address, then drag the pin to the exact tree if you can.

No pin yet. Type an address and press "Find on map", or click the map.

Your details are used only for this study, are stored in a private folder at the university, and are never shared or published. You can ask for them to be deleted at any time by emailing mareeb@students.kennesaw.edu.