Subject: Brilliant blue insect
Location: San Diego, CA 92129
July 19, 2014 3:50 pm
My six year old daughter showed me a brilliant blue insect carcass in our San Diego backyard (Rancho Penasquitos area) that I was unable to identify. At first, I was thinking it was a type of cuckoo wasp, but I’ve been unable to find any photograph that matches its appearance. The insect was about an inch long. If you can help identify it, I’d be grateful.
Thanks,
Signature: M. Yasuda
Dear M. Yasuda,
Our suspicions that this was a Steel Blue Cricket Hunter, Chlorion aerarium, started to dissipate when we realized that none of the examples posted to BugGuide had coloring this intense. The closest is this Bugguide image of a Steel Blue Cricket Hunter from Los Angeles. Then we located this excellent match on Project Noah.
Excellent! Daniel, thanks so much for your quick and informed response.
Mark