This is Dolichovespula maculata, the Bald-Faced Hornet. Despite its prevalence, this is my first direct encounter with one.
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Showing posts with label Wasps. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wasps. Show all posts
2013-08-18
The Supermodel in the Sewer: /Dolichovespula maculata/, Bald-Faced Hornet
Setting aside for a moment the less-than-appealing staging, this is a beautiful creature.
This is Dolichovespula maculata, the Bald-Faced Hornet. Despite its prevalence, this is my first direct encounter with one.
This is Dolichovespula maculata, the Bald-Faced Hornet. Despite its prevalence, this is my first direct encounter with one.
2013-08-13
Cry Wolf: /Philanthus gibossus/, Beewolf
Philanthus gibossus, Beewolf, on Pycnanthemum muticum, Clustered Mountain-Mint, in my native plant gardens this past weekend.
This thirsty little wasp face down in a cup of nectar is a Beewolf, so-named because they provision their larvae with bees. Despite the size of the image, these wasps are small; the individual flowers of this Pycnanthemum are about the size of a pencil point.
This thirsty little wasp face down in a cup of nectar is a Beewolf, so-named because they provision their larvae with bees. Despite the size of the image, these wasps are small; the individual flowers of this Pycnanthemum are about the size of a pencil point.
2012-08-13
Scolia dubia, Blue-Winged Digger Wasp
Scolia dubia, Blue-winged Digger Wasp, on Pycnanthemum, Mountain-Mint, in my garden.
Another little jewel of a wasp that is new to me this year. I've been seeing it on the Pycnanthemum, but was unable to get decent photos of it until yesterday. I've also seen it on the Clethra alnifolia, Summersweet in my garden, which just started blooming in the past week.
Another little jewel of a wasp that is new to me this year. I've been seeing it on the Pycnanthemum, but was unable to get decent photos of it until yesterday. I've also seen it on the Clethra alnifolia, Summersweet in my garden, which just started blooming in the past week.
2011-07-31
Gardening with the Hymenoptera (and yet not)
Contents
One of the great pleasures of gardening is observing the activity the garden invites. I can lay out the welcome mat, and set the table, but the guests decide whether or not the invitation is enticing enough to stop by for a drink, a meal, or to raise a family. While charismatic megafauna such as birds and mammals are entertaining, the most common and endlessly diverse visitors are insects.
The Hymenoptera includes bees, wasps, and ants. Although my garden also provides amply for ants, we'll stick with the bees and wasps today. Following are some of the few portaits I've been able to capture of the many visitors to my gardens. The pollinator magnet, Pycnanthemum, Mountain-mint, in the Lamiaceae, provides the stage for many of these photos. I'm always amazed at the variety and abundance of insect activity it attracts when blooming.
Multiple pollinators on Pycnanthemum
Bees
There are over 250 species of bees native to New York City alone. I'm still learning to identify just a handful of the dozens of species that frequent my garden.My current favorite is the bejeweled Agapostemon, Jade Bee
2009-08-18
Sphecius speciosus, Eastern Cicada Killer
Although I've lived in Brooklyn since 1992, I didn't encounter Sphecius speciosus, the Eastern Cicada Killer, until we moved to Flatbush in 2005. It was summer, and I was working outside in the garden. Suddenly, here was the biggest wasp I had ever seen, large and loud, buzzing around my driveway and digging into the lawn next to it. I freaked out. I hosed out the burrow and destroyed the nest.
I regret having done that. I attribute my over-reaction partially to the stresses of being a first-time homeowner. I now find them beautiful. I consider myself lucky that we live in an urban area where these specialists can thrive. Besides, they are much too busy during their short adult lives to bother with people.
Sphecius speciosus, Eastern Cicada Killer, with prey, just inside the Eastern Parkway entrance of the Osborne Garden at Brooklyn Botanic Garden, August 2009
They have a fascinating, if gruesome by human standards, life history. It could easily be the inspiration for the xenomorph of the Alien movie series.
After mating, the female digs out a deep tunnel leading to a multi-chambered nest. They're impressive excavators. This debris pile appeared overnight alongside our driveway and sidewalk in August of 2012. The concrete curb is 3" high.
Here's the entrance to a nest in Cattus Island Park in Toms River, in the coastal pine barrens of New Jersey, in August of 2011. Note there are 4 different colors of sand, showing the different layers, and depths, the female reached.
The female then hunts for and captures an adult cicada, paralyzing it with its sting without killing it. It returns with the cicada to its burrow, dragging it into one of the chambers of the nest. It lays a single egg on the cicada. It repeats this process several times. The female dies soon after egg-laying.
Sphecius speciosus, Eastern Cicada Killer, with prey, at the Flatbush CommUNITY Garden, July 2008
When the egg hatches, the larva feeds on the still-living cicada. When the cicada hs been completely consumed, the larva spins a cocoon and overwinters as a pre-pupa. In Spring it emerges from the cocoon as a pupa, eventually metamorphosizing and emerging as adults, male and female, for mating and renewing the cycle.
Dog-day Cicada (annual Cicada) in Prospect Park, July 2008
I was prompted to write this in response to a message sent out on the Flatbush Family Network:
Flickr photo set
Wikipedia
University of Kentucky Entomology
Ohio State University Extension
I regret having done that. I attribute my over-reaction partially to the stresses of being a first-time homeowner. I now find them beautiful. I consider myself lucky that we live in an urban area where these specialists can thrive. Besides, they are much too busy during their short adult lives to bother with people.
Sphecius speciosus, Eastern Cicada Killer, with prey, just inside the Eastern Parkway entrance of the Osborne Garden at Brooklyn Botanic Garden, August 2009
They have a fascinating, if gruesome by human standards, life history. It could easily be the inspiration for the xenomorph of the Alien movie series.
After mating, the female digs out a deep tunnel leading to a multi-chambered nest. They're impressive excavators. This debris pile appeared overnight alongside our driveway and sidewalk in August of 2012. The concrete curb is 3" high.
Here's the entrance to a nest in Cattus Island Park in Toms River, in the coastal pine barrens of New Jersey, in August of 2011. Note there are 4 different colors of sand, showing the different layers, and depths, the female reached.
The female then hunts for and captures an adult cicada, paralyzing it with its sting without killing it. It returns with the cicada to its burrow, dragging it into one of the chambers of the nest. It lays a single egg on the cicada. It repeats this process several times. The female dies soon after egg-laying.
Sphecius speciosus, Eastern Cicada Killer, with prey, at the Flatbush CommUNITY Garden, July 2008
When the egg hatches, the larva feeds on the still-living cicada. When the cicada hs been completely consumed, the larva spins a cocoon and overwinters as a pre-pupa. In Spring it emerges from the cocoon as a pupa, eventually metamorphosizing and emerging as adults, male and female, for mating and renewing the cycle.
Dog-day Cicada (annual Cicada) in Prospect Park, July 2008
Cicada killers are solitary wasps. Males emerge from pupal cases in mid-July to early August, a few weeks before the females. The males tunnel out of the ground, leaving telltale holes, and select a territory that they actively defend. Females mate soon after emerging, and then begin digging burrows in the ground using their mandibles and legs. The burrows can be several feet deep with numerous branches.Felis catus ssp. cicadakilleratus 'Ripley' on my back porch, August 2009
Once construction is complete, the female searches in trees and shrubs. Upon capturing a cicada, the female stings it injecting venom. Then, she carries the cicada back to the burrow, where she lays an egg on its living, but paralyzed body. Within two weeks, the egg hatches into a larva, eats the cicada, and develops into a pre-pupa, the stage at which it will spend the winter. Cicada killers are active in late summer, the same time that cicadas are present. By September, most adults have died.
Although visually alarming, these wasps pose little threat. Females are not aggressive and rarely sting, unless excessively provoked. Males often display territorial behavior and will dive-bomb people’s heads; however, they have no sting and pose no real threat.
- Cicada Killer, Master Beekeeper Program, Cornell University
I was prompted to write this in response to a message sent out on the Flatbush Family Network:
We seem to have an underground yellow jacket nest on our front walkway with a "Queen" that is about 2.5 inches long.....a little frightening to me but will absolutely scare the wits out of my kids- she looks like she can carry her own luggage! Anyone know an exterminator that can come and get rid of this Quick!?[bit.ly]
Thanks, Lori
Related Content
Dog-Day Cicadas, 2008-07-11Flickr photo set
Links
BugGuideWikipedia
University of Kentucky Entomology
Ohio State University Extension
2009-07-12
Monobia quadridens, Mason Wasp
Monobia quadridens, Mason Wasp, male (I think), on Aster novae-angliae 'Chilly Winds' in my backyard native plant garden this afternoon.
Today was my first full day home since last Monday, and I was sick for nearly a week leading up to that. So I took advantage of the beautiful weather in NYC and got out into the garden. The weeds had gotten away from me, and I spent most of my time dealing with them, at least a little bit.
I then turned my attention to the center of activity in the backyard: the massive specimen of New England Aster that just started to bloom in my absence. It's a selection of the species I ordered from Seneca Hill Perennials, which specializes in New York native plants, a couple years back. It didn't do much at first. In the full sun it's enjoyed since I had to take down the last of the weedy maples last year, it has grown to shrublike proportions - 5' wide and high - mocking the meager 1-2' spacing I provided between it and the plants around it. Today's pollinator activity concentrated on just the handful of open flowers. It has hundreds of buds. When it's in full bloom, the activity will be audible.
I was watching for bees, and there were a lot of different species visiting. This wasp was the most striking visitor. It's Monobia quadridens, the Mason Wasp. From the antennae, I think it's a male. Thanks to tangledbranches for the ID!
Judging from the photos on its BugGuide page alone, this is a common species with a wide distribution. It's native to eastern North America. From a gardener's perspective, this is a beneficial insect. It provisions its young with caterpillars in nests burrowed into the ground or bored into wood; it's also known as a Carpenter Wasp. I've never noticed it before. I hope to see more of it as the Aster comes into full bloom.
[http://bit.ly/imbbO]
Today was my first full day home since last Monday, and I was sick for nearly a week leading up to that. So I took advantage of the beautiful weather in NYC and got out into the garden. The weeds had gotten away from me, and I spent most of my time dealing with them, at least a little bit.
I then turned my attention to the center of activity in the backyard: the massive specimen of New England Aster that just started to bloom in my absence. It's a selection of the species I ordered from Seneca Hill Perennials, which specializes in New York native plants, a couple years back. It didn't do much at first. In the full sun it's enjoyed since I had to take down the last of the weedy maples last year, it has grown to shrublike proportions - 5' wide and high - mocking the meager 1-2' spacing I provided between it and the plants around it. Today's pollinator activity concentrated on just the handful of open flowers. It has hundreds of buds. When it's in full bloom, the activity will be audible.
I was watching for bees, and there were a lot of different species visiting. This wasp was the most striking visitor. It's Monobia quadridens, the Mason Wasp. From the antennae, I think it's a male. Thanks to tangledbranches for the ID!
Judging from the photos on its BugGuide page alone, this is a common species with a wide distribution. It's native to eastern North America. From a gardener's perspective, this is a beneficial insect. It provisions its young with caterpillars in nests burrowed into the ground or bored into wood; it's also known as a Carpenter Wasp. I've never noticed it before. I hope to see more of it as the Aster comes into full bloom.
[http://bit.ly/imbbO]
Related Content
Links
BugGuide page
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