[3][5] Behaviours of this wasp include nest defense, curling which is believed to function in brood incubation, and gastral vibration which is involved in larval feeding.

[6] The median wasp has a halplodiploid sex determination system that results in a high level of relatedness within the colony.

[8] The median wasp is known to be occasionally affected by the fungus Cordyceps sphecocephala and the Cricket paralysis virus.

D. media is a medium to large species of wasp around 16–22 millimetres (0.63–0.87 in) in length with yellow and black stripes on its abdomen.

The median wasp also has a shiny black thorax with four yellow spots that are tinted orange or red.

[10] Queens are often mistaken for hornets due to their reddish colouration, but can be distinguished by their thoracic spots and deep black color.

The median wasp has a Palearctic distribution and is found throughout Europe and temperate regions of Asia all the way east to Japan.

[3] The nests are initiated in early May when a single queen emerges from her overwintering hibernation site.

[2] All queens in the same region tend to emerge from hibernation and initiate nests at about the same time and do not disperse over weeks or months as in some other species.

The colony continues to grow and large cell construction begins in early July which is where the new queens and some males will be raised.

The rest of the workers, the old queen, and the males will begin to die off with the colony terminating by the end of August.

[12] The entrance of young nests sometimes consists of a long vestibule, or entry compartment, whose function is unknown.

This long vestibule has only been observed in D. media and D. maculata species and tends to disappear as the nest matures.

[3] In the median wasp foraging activities take place throughout the day and can be done in temperatures as low as 7 °C (45 °F).

As D. media searches for prey it stops for a moment over each flower in contrast to other species such as V. flaviceps which quickly fly up and down each plant.

[6][8] When small insects such as ants or spiders crawl on the nest the wasp responds by grabbing them in her mandibles and dropping to the ground.

In addition, one study involving Vespa simillima showed that cell wall temperature rose by an average of 2.5–4.0 °C (36.5–39.2 °F) and remained constant during curling.

The rise in temperature and timing of the behaviour suggest that it is important in incubation for the offspring while they are eggs and larvae.

Queens have been observed tapping mid or hind legs on the comb after returning with prey.

Tapping continues in the queen even after she has ceased foraging when she feeding larvae pellets that she receives from the workers.

[7] Most Dolichovespula species including D. media mate only once or fertilise most eggs with sperm from a single male.

The DNA analysis allowed the researchers to determine if males were queen's or workers’ sons and from there calculate an estimated relatedness.

[9] It is not known if this fungus kills living wasps or if it simply attacks dead insects, but there is some evidence to suggest that overwintering queens can be infected.

[9] Median wasps may be considered a pest by some because its nests are usually built in shrubs or on houses where they are easily disturbed.

If the wasp becomes widespread and feeds on native flies, moths, and nectar it will compete for resources with other species.