Welcome to the home of the Bald-Faced Hornet. This hornet is a relative of the yellowjacket. They can be very agressive so I recommend not provoking them.
A few facts from Wikipedia:
Bald-faced hornets are omnivorous, and considered to be beneficial due to their predation of flies, caterpillars, and spiders. Their aggressive defensive nature, though, makes them a threat to humans who wander too close to a nest or when a nest is constructed too close to human habitation. They vigorously defend the nest, with workers stinging repeatedly, as is common among social bees and wasps. The bald-faced hornet has a unique defense in that it can squirt or spray venom from the stinger into the eyes of vertebrate nest intruders. The venom causes immediate watering of the eyes and temporary blindness. wikipedia.
And a bonus: I think this is a Persimmon tree.
~ Rick
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