Subject: assassin? wasp?
Location: Bethesda, MD
July 13, 2017 7:22 am
Found this on my potted hosta in Bethesda Maryland, July 2017.
I took the photos myself.
I’m downloading a couple of images, but the edited images at this link to my blog are much better:
http://www.margaretsoltan.com/
Signature: Margaret Soltan
Dear Margaret,
This beautiful creature is a parasitoid Braconid Wasp, and we believe it is Atanycoius longicauda based on this BugGuide image. BugGuide states of the genus: “Parasites of woodboring beetle larvae, especially metallic wood-boring beetles (Buprestidae) and longhorn beetles (Cerambycidae).”
Daniel: Thank you! I appreciate the identification (I’ve spent fruitless hours looking at images), and I really appreciate the quick reply. And I’m glad you agree it’s beautiful.
All best, Margaret