HomeGuideID RequestRecentFrassForumsDonateHelp

Giving Tuesday

Do you use BugGuide? Please consider a monetary gift on this Giving Tuesday.

Donate Now

Your donation to BugGuide is tax-deductible.

Clickable Guide

Calendar

Upcoming Events

See Moth submissions from National Moth Week 2023

Photos of insects and people from the 2022 BugGuide gathering in New Mexico, July 20-24

Photos of insects and people from the Spring 2021 gathering in Louisiana, April 28-May 2

Photos of insects and people from the 2019 gathering in Louisiana, July 25-27

Photos of insects and people from the 2018 gathering in Virginia, July 27-29

Photos of insects and people from the 2015 gathering in Wisconsin, July 10-12

Previous events

TaxonomyBrowse

Info

ImagesLinksBooksData

Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies (Hymenoptera) » "Parasitica" - Parasitoid Wasps » Aulacid, Ensign, and Gasteruptiid Wasps (Evanioidea) » Ensign Wasps (Evaniidae)

Family Evaniidae - Ensign Wasps

Classification · Other Common Names · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Food · Life Cycle · Remarks · Internet References · Works Cited

Blue-eyed Ensign Wasp - Evania appendigaster

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Hymenoptera (Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies)

No Taxon ("Parasitica" - Parasitoid Wasps)

Superfamily Evanioidea (Aulacid, Ensign, and Gasteruptiid Wasps)

Family Evaniidae (Ensign Wasps)

Other Common Names

Cockroach Egg Parasitoid Wasps; Hatchet Wasps; Nightshade Wasps

Explanation of Names

Evaniidae Latreille 1802

Numbers

11 spp. in 4 genera in our area(1), ~440 spp. in >30 genera total

Size

in our spp., forewing length from 2.5 mm (Hyptia floridana) to 7.5 mm (Prosevania fuscipes)(2)

Identification

The gaster is very small and oval, attached by a slender petiole to the propodeum, considerably above the base of the hind coxae. It is carried almost like a flag (thus the name).

keys to NA taxa(3)

Hyptia - our only genus with a single enclosed cell in the forewing and in [partially] lacking notauli; body entirely black to entirely ferruginous

Evania - our only genus with the fore, mid, and hind coxae spaced evenly; our single species readily distinguished by its large size (forewing 5.5-7 mm, only rivaled by P. fuscipes), body black, eyes blue

Evaniella - our only genus with the fore wing having multiple cells and length ≤5.0 mm; body often marked with ferruginous

Prosevania - our only genus with a large size (forewing 5.5-7 mm, only rivaled by E. appendigaster) and close spacing of the mid and hind coxae; our single species only recorded from urban environments is further noted by its long scapes, robust thorax, and dark coloration often with brown on the extremities

Range

much of the world; in NA, eastern and southwestern(1)

Habitat

Hyptia and Evaniella are found primarily in the woods. The introduced genera, Evania and Prosevania, are more often found in buildings in the cities, around where introduced species of cockroaches frequently occur.(1)

Food

Parasitoids of the egg capsules of cockroaches

Life Cycle

Females have very short and stout ovipositors. They prefer newly laid eggs that have not developed hard, impervious coats. Each cockroach egg case contains about 50 eggs. Eating only a few provide sufficient food the the single wasp larva.(4)

Remarks

When searching for their host, the wasps pump their posterior end rhythmically up and down, like a chopping of a hatchet.(4)

Internet References

Fact sheet (Brambila & Koehler 1997)

Tree of Life

Works Cited

1.	Catalog of Hymenoptera in America North of Mexico Karl V. Krombein, Paul D. Hurd, Jr., David R. Smith, and B. D. Burks. 1979. Smithsonian Institution Press.

2.	The Nearctic Species of Evaniidae (Hymenoptera) Townes, H. 1949. Proceedings of the United States National Museum. 99 (3253):525–539.

3.	Deans A.R., Yoder M.J., Dole K. (2013-) Evanioidea Online - catalog of information about evanioid wasps (Hymenoptera)

4.	Hidden Company that Trees Keep: Life from Treetops to Root Tips James B. Nardi. 2023. Princeton University Press.

Contributed by Tony DiTerlizzi on 2 April, 2005 - 10:51pm
Additional contributions by cotinis, Beatriz Moisset, Bbarnd, v belov, Marci Hess, PaleoJon, bdagley
Last updated 23 September, 2023 - 12:17pm

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 © 2003-2023 Iowa State University, unless otherwise noted.

Bugguide is hosted by:

Printer Friendly Version