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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies (Hymenoptera) » parasitic Apocrita » Cynipoidea » Gall Wasps (Cynipidae)
Photo#44297
Gall Wasp (Cynipidae)
Copyright © 2006 Ed Johnson

Gall Wasp (Cynipidae)
Kerrville, Kerr County, Texas, USA
March 6, 2006
Size: ~9mm
What are these guys? I'm sure that they're quite common. They're swarming this evening (Texas Hill Country).

Images of this individual: tag all
Gall Wasp (Cynipidae) Unknown Gnat type critter
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Contributed by Ed Johnson on 6 March, 2006 - 8:21pm
Last updated 2 April, 2006 - 11:34pm

Gall Wasp (Cynipidae)
Wing venation, lacking a costal vein, is unique to superfamily Cynipoidea. Details of other weins and cells, and overall habitus, betray a true Gall Wasp, i.e, a member of family Cynipidae.
The scale included seems to contradict your size assessment: even without wings and antennae, the insect would then reach at least 6 mm, which is rather large for this group.
… Richard Vernier, 7 March, 2006 - 7:09am login or register to post comments

 
Gall Wasp
Hi, Richard. Thank you so much for the reply.

The scale is correct - the size listed was a typo. I have corrected it.

As these guys were swarming last evening, there were a number of dead ones around this morning. I just carefully measured one. He was 9.5 mm from the end of his folded wings to the tip of his antennae, which were splayed at about a 60 degree angle.

I have added another photo showing two individuals. As you can see, they vary considerably in size.

BTW, we do have a number of oak trees around, some of which have quite a few galls every year.

....Ed....
… Ed Johnson, 7 March, 2006 - 8:38am login or register to post comments

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