Yellowjackets are the same size as honey bees, but have bright yellow and black stripes and very little hair.
Honey bees tend to be covered with pale yellow fuzzy hairs without a distinctive stripe pattern.
The two common species of yellowjackets in the midwest are the eastern yellowjacket which usually nests in the ground, and the German yellowjacket that has a habit of nesting in wall voids of structures. Each nest has a queen whose purpose is to reproduce. Male yellowjackets fertilize the queen, and sterile female workers find food, take care of the queen, defend the nest, and care for the young. Depending on the species, she will locate a hole underground, often an abandoned rodent burrow, or in a structure and construct a golf ball sized nest of paper that is made by mixing wood fibers with her saliva. She lays eggs and cares for the grub-like larvae in the nest.