wasp photo
Hi there
I have been through your wood wasp shots but couldn’t find anything like this one. My parents found it beside their pile of firewood logs. It is about an inch long (2.5cm) and the ovipositor is a bit longer than the body. We have never seen anything like it. Some of the logs had 4mm bore holes in them.
Regards
Peter
Falkirk
Scotland

Hi Peter,
Ichneumons are wasp relatives, but have their own page on our site. This looks very similar to our American Megarhyssa species, but we cannot conclusively say that is the correct genus without more research. Female oviposits deep in rotting wood where larvae feed on wood boring insects.

can u tell me what this is
i found this guy in a casino out side of chicago
stephon young
chicago il

Hi Stephon,
We believe this is a male Ichneumon in the genus Megarhyssa. We usually get photos of the females with their extremely long ovipositors. We will check with Eric Eaton to get a second opinion.

stinger
Hi there. My wife won’t squash most bugs; she captures the critters and tosses them outside. Yesterday she thought she was saving a crane fly, but when she cupped it in her hand, whatever it was gave her a nice sting. Later in the day I found it and took its picture. Unfortunately, the process seems to have sent it to its final reward. I’m attaching the mugshots. Can you identify it? Thanks.
Russ
Topanga, CA

Hi Russ,
We thought this looked like an Ichneumon, but had never heard of them stinging. So, we wrote to Eric Eaton and he wrote back with this surprising reply: “Yes to both! It IS an ichneumon, probably in the Ophionini tribe, and they are among the few ichneumons capable of stinging. I had been under the impression that NO ichneumons could sting, but that is WRONG. Some apparently paralyze their host caterpillars long enough to drive an egg into them. Goes to show that I’m still learning basic information myself. Eric”

What’s this bug??
Hello! Can you please identify this tree bug for me? Last summer at our cottage in the Eastern Townships (Brome Lake), Canada…I found several of these bugs burrowing into one of my trees. The tree is hollowed in several places by woodpeckers. These particular flying bugs that have about 4 inch long triple tail end tenticles that burrow into the tree, (all 4 inches of their tail end tenticles into the tree, and I must say only in this particular tree). They may be about 2 inches in length, and I also see some smaller brownish types around, but they do not react in the same way. The larger ones that appear to be darker in color, have a tail end that engulfs, and fans out into a whitish colored fan, that may grow to about the size of a nickle. Once their tail end fan appears at its’ largest, they retract it and fly away. I have never seen this bug before, and have owned my cottage for the past 25 years. Can you help identify, and explain what this bug is? I hope my pictures will be good.
Thankyou,.
Diane O’Donnell

Hi Diane,
The Giant Ichneumon, Megarhyssa atrata, is a beneficial insect that lays eggs in wood infested by boring grubs.

Please help!
This awesome looking wasp-like insect was discovered on the window outside my house. I have searched your website, other websites, and several insect guides and cannot find anything like it. It somewhat resembles a mayfly and has three long whip-like tails protruding from its back section, but I’m pretty sure it’s not one. Can you help me identify this fascinating insect?
Thanks,
Andrea

Hi Andrea,
Nice collection. This is a Giant Ichneumon in the genus Megarhyssa.

Wasp? Fabulous site! Thank you in advance, too! These wasps (?) flew in last night (10/17/05) and swarmed all over just one dying fir tree, they weren’t on any other tree on the property, and they’re gone today. There is a long, 2-3 inches, thin antenna like thing coming out of the back end and they were using it to probe into the cracks of the tree bark.
Sharla Swinney
Willits California , Mendocino County,
California, USA

Hi Sharla,
This is some species of Ichneumon, a wasp relative. The females use that long ovipositor to deposit eggs deep in the wood. Ichneumons are parasitic wasps and your unidentified species was laying eggs that will devour wood boring larvae that have probably infested the dying tree. Fascinating image.

Eric Eaton’s Correction: (10/20/2005)
“The ichneumon swarm is actually a bunch of braconid wasps. VERY easy to confuse the two, especially in this case because so few braconids are parasitic on wood borers. ”