John Badman|The Telegraph A group of yellowjacket wasps build their nest near the Alton riverfront. The wasps build comb structures layered one over another called brood cells, where they rear their larvae. The structure, similar to paper mache, is made from wasp saliva mixed with chewed, weathered wood. Some people mistake them for bees but they are not. Yellowjackets are known for being notoriously aggressive and should be avoided.

ALTON — A group of yellowjacket wasps are seen recently building their nest near the Alton riverfront.

The wasps build comb structures layered one over another called brood cells, where they rear their larvae. The structure, similar to paper mache, is made from wasp saliva mixed with chewed, weathered wood.

Some people mistake them for bees, but they are not. Yellowjackets are known for being notoriously aggressive and should be avoided.

John Badman is a 1982 graduate of SIU-Carbondale, with a major in cinema and photography and a minor in law enforcement administration of justice. He has worked at The Telegraph in Alton full-time for 39 years and has been named the National Press Photographers Association's Region-5 Photographer of the Year six times.