Square-headed wasp - there's a new one for me.

 

The variety of wasps is truly amazing.  I am not talking about things like yellow jackets, hornets, or even the robust tarantula hawk.  No, I am referring to the plethora of other wasp families and sub-families, one of which is the square-headed wasp.  The website bugguide.net mentions that there are about 520 species of this particular type of wasp (click here) in the US and Canada.  The diversity is amazing.

The particular genus of square-headed wasp shown above was photographed east of Edmonton.  It belongs to the genus Lestica.  The adults collect adult moths and place them in holes it finds in wood.  It lays an egg on the newly stored larder and seals the hole up.  The young larva feeds on the provisions and then pupates, waiting for spring to emerge and begin the cycle all over again.

I think most people consider wasps to live in paper nests, to be communal in nature, and to possess a rather potent sting.  Most species of wasp deviate from these traits significantly.  Square-headed wasps are solitary, a characteristic common with most wasp species.  Their nests are either burrowed in the ground or utilize existing wooden cavities.  They are predatory, like most wasp species,  but their sting is mild at best.  

Square-headed wasps are very beneficial insects.  As is true with most hymenopterans, they cull insect pests and help them from overpopulating an area.  This is one of the reasons biodiversity is so very important.  Removing one species from an area can have catastrophic consequences for an environment.  We often do not understand the role any one insect species plays and how it benefits not only us but also the planet around us.

Thanks for reading.   www.ericspix.com