European Hornet

    These are European Hornets. I was scared of them at first because of their size (1 1/2 in long) and their unsettling habit of hurling their bodies against my window at night.
    Now that I know more about them I am much more comfortable with them. They are actually quite approachable just as long as none of the approaching is done around their nest. Every source I read describes them as ferocious in guarding their home. 
    When they are out and about I can get quite close if I move slowly. Move too fast and they just fly away.  Of course I wouldn't consider touching one!
    Their sting is very painful but not nearly so poisonous as a bee's. You are less likely to have an allergic reaction to a hornet sting.
    These three are removing the bark from a tree. They use bark as nest building material and they collect the sweet sap from beneath to take back to the nest to feed the young. The young also eat crickets, grasshoppers, flies, and caterpillars.
    European Hornets can damage fruit trees by girdling the limbs and they can destroy the fruit while still on the tree. In spite of this in Germany it is illegal to kill a one or destroy the nest.  In Germany one must have special permission to remove them. Failure to get permission can result in a fine.
    In between photos I watched these communicate with each other by touching their faces to one another and making a high pitched humming sound.