Unidentified Insect - Please Help

Stuart Roberts spmr at msn.com
Thu Aug 19 04:11:28 EDT 1999


Mike Soukup <mikayak at ix.netcom.com> wrote in message
news:37BB8471.D06DE6E6 at ix.netcom.com...
> Sounds like a "Velvet Ant"....which is really a hornet/wasp?   Nasty,
nasty
> sting I understand.

It must be. The one that looks like an ant is the wingless female. She has
the nasty sting. The ones flying around are the fully winged males. They
have no sting (this is true of all bees and wasps)

 Other than that, I believe they are harmless and they are
> beautiful to look at

They are beautiful....unless you happen to be the species of ground nesting
wasp upon which they lay their eggs. They are parasitoids within the nests.

I've just dealt with a similar question on Sci.bio.entomology.misc

Stuart Roberts
UK



More information about the Leps-l mailing list