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Ichneumonid Wasp

Photo by LaurenZarate
Published on Project Noah
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Field Notes

Description:

Wasp of about 1.5 cm in length. Reddish-black with yellow eye-glasses and a yellow scutellum. The antennae are black with a white band in the center of each.

Habitat:

Came to an ultraviolet light in the garden, San Cristobal de Las Casas, 2,200 meters.

Species ID Suggestions

Comments (3)
John La Salle
Hi Lauren. Those bands are quite interesting - you see them quite commonly in some of the ichneumonid groups. Not sure about why they are there. I could guess that they might have something to do with a visual cue for mating. Many wasps will more or less rub antennae or wave their antennae about as part of a pre-mating ritual. A lot of this communication is chemical - so would have nothing to do with colour. But some of it might be visual. Just a guess, though.
LaurenZarate
Thank you John. I really like this one. It is interesting all the theories about why so many wasps in so many different families have those light bands on the antennae. Do you have a theory you like best?

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Photographed
PublishedAugust 1, 2013

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