Identification, Images, & Information
For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada
 

Register · Log In
HomeGuideID RequestRecentFrassForumsDonateHelp
Clickable Guide
Moths Butterflies Flies Caterpillars Flies Dragonflies Flies Mantids Cockroaches Bees and Wasps Walkingsticks Earwigs Ants Termites Hoppers and Kin Hoppers and Kin Beetles True Bugs Fleas Grasshoppers and Kin Ticks Spiders Scorpions Centipedes Millipedes

Calendar
BugGuide Gathering
Pack Forest
Washington State
July 10-12, 2009
Details...

Photos from the 2009 gathering
 
Photos from the 2008 gathering in Tennessee
 
Photos from the 2007 gathering in Minnesota

TaxonomyBrowseInfoImagesLinksBooksData
Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies (Hymenoptera) » parasitic Apocrita » Braconids and Ichneumons (Ichneumonoidea) » Ichneumon Wasps (Ichneumonidae) » Rhyssinae » Giant Ichneumons (Megarhyssa) » Megarhyssa atrata
Photo#288908
Not Your Everyday, Ordinary, Black and Yellow Insect - Megarhyssa atrata
Copyright © 2009 David.

Not Your Everyday, Ordinary, Black and Yellow Insect - Megarhyssa atrata
Minnesota, USA
June 10, 2009
Size: Approximately 5-6 inches
Discovered on top of a wood pile. I was told that this is an Ichneumon wasp. Google came up with the BugGuide, so I'm posting here to share the photo and get more specific information, as the Ichneumon classification seems quite general.

Images of this individual: tag all
Not Your Everyday, Ordinary, Black and Yellow Insect - Megarhyssa atrata Not Your Everyday, Ordinary, Black and Yellow Insect - Megarhyssa atrata
tag · login or register to post comments
Contributed by David. on 15 June, 2009 - 8:44pm
Last updated 17 June, 2009 - 4:09pm

Yes...
Just to confirm this is M. atrata as Charley noted. These wasps are quite spectacular indeed.
… Ross Hill, 17 June, 2009 - 2:19pm login or register to post comments

Welcome to BugGuide!
You are right that the ichneumon classification is general; this is a family with about 3000 North American species. This particular one looks like Megarhyssa atrata to me (not an expert). You can read about it here. This is a female, and I believe she has just finished (or maybe is about to start?) laying eggs. She has a very long ovipositor that she inserts in wood to lay eggs near larvae of horntails (wood-boring wasp-like insects), which her larvae will parasitize. Nice shot!
… Charley Eiseman, 15 June, 2009 - 8:49pm login or register to post comments

Comment viewing options
Select your preferred way to display the comments and click 'Save settings' to activate your changes.

Disclaimer: Dedicated naturalists volunteer their time and resources here to provide this service. We strive to provide accurate information, but we are mostly just amateurs attempting to make sense of a diverse natural world. If you need expert professional advice, contact your local extension office.

Contributors own the copyright to and are solely responsible for contributed content.
Click the contributor's name for licensing and usage information.
Everything else copyright © 2003-2009 Iowa State University, unless otherwise noted.

Bugguide is hosted by Iowa State University Entomology.

Printer Friendly Version 		Terms of Use
Privacy Policy
Site Map
Contact