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Wasps and HornetsPlease tell me what this bug is
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Thanks,
Ted
Hi Ted,
We are posting your image, but we are a non profit site and will not reproduce it in any future publications. Your Odd Looking Wasp is Pelecinus polyturator, a large and striking insect. According to Borror and Delong: “The female is 2 inches or more in length, shining black, with the abdomen very long and slender; the male, which is extremely rare in this country, is about an inch long and has the posterior part of the abdomen swollen. The females do not sting. this insect is parasitic on the larvae of June Beetles.” Our Audubon Guide also adds: “Female shoves its abdomen deep into soil to detect host larvae below, then lays eggs one at a time, each on a separate host. Pelecinid larvae burrow into hosts, killing them. They scavange on remains.”
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