Distribution: N Africa, Europe, north to 61º N (Pekkarinen, Gustafsson, 1999), Asia minor, Near East, Caucasus, Iran, Kyrghyzstan, Kazakhstan, Mongolia; Russia: European part (excluding the Far North), N Caucasus, Southern Siberia (Tobias, 1978; Kurzenko, 1995; Dubatolov, 1998).

Localities from collection of SZMN and literature: Russia:Orenburg Province (not shown on map!): Railway Station Km 25 (NE from Orenburg), Donskoe, Guberlya; Chelyabinsk Province: Miass; Kurgan Province: Kurgan, Ust'-Uiskoe, Ketovo district; Tyumen Province: Tyumen; Novosibirsk Province: 13 km W from Karasuk, Sergovka on the Om' river (Kuibyshev district), Sherstobitovo (Chulym district), Lake Menzelinskoe (Kolyvan' district), Ordynskoe and Chingisy (Ordynskoe district); Altaiskii Krai: Tulata (Charyshskoe district), Soldatovo (Petropavlovskoe district); Altai Republic: Shebalino, Cherga, Dzhazator, Lake Teletskoe; Khakasia: Birikchul', Abaza; Tuva: Kyzyl, Bai-Khaak, Kaa-Khem and Samagaltai districts, Torgalyg (Ovyur district); Buryatia: Taezhnyi (Gusinoozersk district), Kokorino (Ulan-Ude district); Chita Province: Chita, Kyra, Nerchinskii zavod, Budyumkan River mouth; Yakutia: Yakutsk (Pekkarinen, Gustaffson, 1999); Amur Province: Blagoveshchensk, Zeya Nature Reserve; Jewish Province: Nature Reserve "Bastak"; Khabarovsk Province: Khabarovsk vic., Komsomolsk-na-Amure, Kiselevka. NE Kazakhstan: Serebryansk, Glubokoe, Kurchum Range. Mongolia: Chövsgöl aimak: 6 km WNW from Toson-Cengel (Giordani Soika, 1976); Bulgan aimak: 23 km NW from Chutag, 23 km NNO from Chischig-Öndör (Giordani Soika, 1976); Selenge (not Central!) aimak: Zuun-Chara (Giordani Soika, 1970); Eastern (Töv) aimak: 20 km SW from Bajan-Uul (Giordani Soika, 1970); 10 km S from Zargalant (Gusenleitner, 1991).

References
Dubatolov, V.V. 1998. Social wasps (Hymenoptera, Vespidae: Polistinae, Vespinae) of Siberia in the collection of Siberian Zoological Museum. - Far Eastern Entomologist 57: 1-11.
Dubatolov, V.V. 2011. Social wasps (Hymenoptera, Vespidae: Polistinae, Vespinae) of the Bastak Nature Reserve (Jewish Autonomous Province, Amur basin). - Amurian Zoological Journal 3(1).
Dubatolov, V.V., Dolgikh A.M. 2009. Social wasps (Hymenoptera, Vespidae: Polistinae, Vespinae) of the Bolshekhekhtsyrskii nature reserve (the Khabarovsk suburbs), with notes on their distribution in the Lower Amur. - Amurian zoological journal 1(1): 76-82.
Giordani Soika, A. 1970. Ergebnisse der zoologischen Forschungen von Dr. Z.Kaszab in der Mongolei. 223. Vespidae und Eumenidae (Hymenoptera). - Annales Historico-natureles Musei Nationalis Hungarici. Pars Zoologica 62: 325-333.
Giordani Soika, A. 1976. Vespidi ed Eumenidi (Hymenoptera) raccolti in Mongolia dal Dr. Z. Kaszab. - Acta zoologica Academiae scientiarum hungaricae 22 (3-4): 271-276.
Gusenleitner, J. 1991. Über Vespoidea (Hymenoptera) aus der Mongolei und der Sovietunion. - Linzer biol. Beitr. 23/2: 631-641.
Kurzenko, N.V. 1995. [Fam. Vespidae]. In: [A key to insects from the Far East of Russia]. Vol. 4. Neuropteroidea, Mecoptera, Hymenoptera. Part 1. - St-Petersburg: 264-324. (In Russian).
Pekkarinen, A, Gustavsson, B. 1999. The Polistes species in northern Europe (Hymenoptera: Vespidae). - Entomol. Fennica 10: 191-197.
Tobias, V.I. 1978. [Superfamily Vespoidea - hornets.1. Family Vespidae]. In: [A key to insects from the European part of the USSR]. T. III. [Hymenoptera]. P. 1. Nauka, Leningrad: 147-152. (In Russian).