Identification, Images, & Information
For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada
Photo#54555
Trypoxylon lactitarse - female

Trypoxylon lactitarse - Female
Liberty County, Florida, USA
May 28, 2006
Size: 19 mm

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Trypoxylon lactitarse - female Trypoxylon lactitarse - female

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Trypoxylon lactitarse
This is not the pipe organ mud dauber. T. lactitarse is often confused with T. politum but has pale (not black) hair on the mesosoma. Unlike the latter, T. lactitarse nests in borings in wood and uses mud only for cell partitions but does not construct mud pipes

 
Question
So is T. lactitarse just as common across the eastern US as T. politum? Also, is it as commonly seen in urban areas as T. politum?

Organ Pipe Mud Dauber.
This is a fine shot of a female Trypoxylon (Trypargilum) politum, the "organ pipe mud dauber." Males have a wicked-looking hook on the underside of the abdomen. Most Trypoxylon nest in pre-existing cavities, and they are only one-third to one-half the size of T. politum. Males of T. politum guard the nest while the female is away gathering mud or collecting spiders.