Explanation of Names
Scolia bicincta Fabricius, 1775
bicincta - Latin for 'two-girdled' (Based on Internet searches)
Identification
Dark and hairy, medium-sized wasp. Two creamy white bands on abdomen. Perhaps this is mimicry of the Mason Wasp, Monobia quadridens:
Range
Eastern and central North America
Season
Late Summer: July-September, sometimes October (North Carolina)
Life Cycle
No doubt a parasitoid of beetle larvae, as are other members of this genus.
Remarks
North Carolina State University Entomology Collection has 125 pinned, including specimens from that state.
Print References
Bland, p. 380--gives size, range.
(1)
Brimley, p. 439, gives season in North Carolina.
(3)
Eaton and Kaufman, pp. 350-351
(4)
Salsbury, p. 265--photo
(5)