American pelecinid wasp
The American pelecinid wasp is a big, shiny black wasp with a super long, thin tail. The tail belongs to the females and makes them up to 7 centimetres long. They use it to reach deep into the soil.
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Fun facts
The mother pushes her long tail into the soil to lay eggs inside June beetle grubs.
In some places mothers can have babies without any fathers.
Males are very rare in the United States and Canada, but more common further south.
You can see the grown-ups in late summer.
It also has long feelers on its head.
Most asked questions about American pelecinid wasp
?What is the long tail for?
The female uses it to reach underground beetle grubs and lay her eggs inside them.
?What does the American pelecinid wasp eat?
The grown-ups drink flower nectar.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Pelecinus polyturator
- Group
- Wasps and hornets
- Family
- Pelecinidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Hymenoptera > Pelecinidae
- Lives on
- North America, South America
Where the facts come from
- Pelecinus polyturator (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Alan Rockefeller. CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.
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