Subject: black bug with blue wings
Location: Australia
March 18, 2014 6:59 pm
Hi,
I’ve found this wasp-like bug in my back yard. Through searching Google, the great black wasp seems to resemble the most, but I can’t find information of it living in Melbourne, Australia.
Signature: Ellie B
Dear Ellie B,
This impressive wasp is a Blue Flower Wasp, Discolia soror, and as part of a 2010 posting, we wrote: “the common name is listed as either the Blue Flower Wasp, Black Flower Wasp or Hairy Flower Wasp depending upon the author. The adult feeds upon nectar, and the female lays eggs on Scarab Beetle Grubs which are parasitized by the larval wasps” but without citations. This morning we will hunt for some citations. Csiro calls this a Black Flower Wasp, and provides this information: “The adult females are large and powerful wasps and are designed to dig. They burrow into the soil to locate scarab grubs (from beetles such as the Christmas beetle), which they sting and lay an egg on.” Csiro also indicates: “Female black flower wasps can sting but rarely do, as they are not aggressive. It is not necessary to control them.” The Brisbane Insect website calls this a Blue Hairy Flower Wasp and states: “We sometime see them flying and walking among shrubs searching for prey. They lay eggs on scarab beetle grubs in the soil.” Project Noah uses the name Blue Flower Wasp and The Agricultural Gazette of New South Wales uses the name Blue-Winged Scolia.
I went for a walk this morning in a local park in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne. I saw a little swarm of these wasps flying low around some shrubs. I stood amongst them for about 10 minutes, hoping I could see one landing. It never happened. So I caught one out of the air with my hand. But didn’t dare to hold on to it because it tried to pinch me. Unfortunately still didn’t managed to get a glimpse of it.
Their bodies were about 20mm long, never saw the wings.