Species: Ichneumon wasp - unnamed 1 (Ephialtes manifestator)
Family: Ichneumon wasps (ICHNEUMONIDAE)
Category: Insects (Other)
Location: Widespread
A. Insects (Other)
More extensive information on insects can be found in a separate blog post.
B. Ichneumon wasps (ICHNEUMONIDAE)
Ichneumon wasps are a family of 'parasitoids' that usually attack the caterpillars of butterflies and moths (and other insects and spiders). Unlike social wasps, these parasites are solitary.
Although they share the characteristic 'wasp waist' with their social wasp cousins, the ichneumons are generally long and thin, having notably long antennae (usually with 16 segments, compared to the 13 or less of other wasps). If you are lucky enough to see these flighty insects, you may notice their antennae moving rapidly from side to side, indicating that they are probably hunting for prey using a 'stereo-smell' function that enables them to locate prey using olfactory information detected by receptor neurons in their antennae.
C. Ichneumon wasp - unnamed 1 (Ephialtes manifestator)
The Sussex county recorder for true flies (diptera) has very kindly advised us that this individual is a member of the ichneumon wasp family.
The Natural History Museum provides a very helpful beginner's guide to identifying British ichneumonids which explains the difference between each of the nine species of the family that, like this one, all have black bodies and orange legs. Page 29 of the guide shows Ephialtes manifestator which it says can be recognized by a fringe of curved hairs along the leading edge of the forewing. We think that this handsome individual has these and is therefore reasonably likely to be Ephialtes manifestator. It has no common English name.
Images
Ichneumon wasp - unnamed 1
Ichneumon wasps are a family of 'parasitoids' that usually attack butterflies and moths.
Ichneumon wasp - unnamed 1
The Sussex county recorder for true flies (diptera) has very kindly advised us that this individual is a member of the ichneumon wasp family.
Ichneumon wasp - unnamed 1
Because this handsome individual has a fringe of curved hairs along the leading edge of the forewing we think that this is therefore reasonably likely to be Ephialtes manifestator.
