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home > content > academic year > order of the month hymenptera > highlighted hymenoptera

Red Imported Fire Ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren [Formicidae]
The red imported fire ant is well known to most everyone in the eastern half of Texas. It continues to spread westward. For more on this invasive species see the fire ant web site at:  Texas Imported Fire Ant and Research Plan

Red Harvester Ant, Pogonomyrmex barbatus [Formicidae]
Harvester ants are common especially in the western part of Texas. These ants for a mound that has a single opening surrounded with pebbles. They clear the vegetation away from the mound and leave a bear area in pastures, rangeland and lawns. The adults fly into the air to mate and sometimes cause a nuisance around tall buildings. Harvest ants are reported to feed mostly on seeds but the also take dead insects as food. There seems to be a close relationship with this ant and horned lizards (horned toads) which apparently feed on harvester ants as a primary part of their diet. Harvester ants are often keep in ant habitats to observe their behavior. While they are usually quite docile, they can sting which produces a sharp pain. There are actually several species of harvester ants but the red harvester ant seems to be one of the most common. Insect collectors often refer to harvester ants as "Pogos" which is a shortened version of the genus name.

Cow Killer, Dasymutilla occidentalis (Linnaeus) [Mutillidae]
Velvet ants are really wasps. Females in this group are wingless and walk quickly over the ground. The females take over nests of ground dwelling insects and use the habitants as food for their larvae. Males in this group fly low over grassy areas in search of a female to mate with. There are many species but most tend to be black and red but some have orange, yellow or white markings. They can produce a powerful sting and this trait leads to the name "cow killer" for one of our largest species. However, they are not reported to kill cows.

Cicada Killer, Sphecius speciosus (Drury) [Sphecidae]
Cicada killer wasps are large and conspicuous. They have amber or honey colored wings, a red thorax and black and yellow markings on the abdomen. They sting cicadas and carry them to a nest in the ground where they sting the prey and paralyze it. Females then lay an egg on the cicada and the wasp grub develops on it as food. While they are solitary nesters, they sometimes have many nests in one area when the soil conditions are sandy and good for nest building.

Ichneumon Wasps, many species [Ichneumonidae]
Ichneumon wasps, braconid wasps and many chalcid wasps are parasitic on insects and other arthropods. These wasps sting the prey and lay eggs inside. The immature wasps are like maggots and feed on the inside of the host. Often they kill the host in the process. Pupae of these wasps can sometimes be seen on the exterior of a caterpillar or other host. This biology is often called parasitoids when they feed in the inside of the host and kill it. Scientists prefer to use the term parasite for external feeders and those that seldom kill the host. These wasps can attach a wide range of arthropods.

Honey Bee, Apis mellifera Linnaeus [Apidae]
The honey bee is well known especially because of honey production. However, it is more important because of the pollination that it provides. Almost all plants other than the grasses are pollinated by insects and the honey bee is one of the most important pollinators. Honey bees have been managed for thousands of years for honey production. The Africanized honey bee or "killer bee" is simply a strain of the honey bee. It is more likely inclined to defend the colony and sting in mass than strains of honey bees that are managed for honey production or pollination.

Southern Yellowjacket, Vespula squamosa (Drury) [Vespidae]
Southern yellowjackets are colonial and usually ground nesting. They sometimes use the same nest for many years and the colony can build up to a large size. There was one nest reported from a ditch bank in east Texas that formed a colony about six feet by ten feet over a period of twenty years or more. Yellowjackets can get aggressive especially in the fall of the year and should be avoided because of the powerful sting. Yellowjackets have a variety of food sources which might be sugary like a soft drink or a protein source like a caterpillar or tuna fish. These ingredients are sometimes used as an attractant to capture them in a trap.

Mud Daubers, many species [Sphecidae]
Mud daubers form nests in sheltered areas like under eaves or in old buildings. There are several species which make distinctive nests. The mud nests are provisioned with prey that the wasp stings and paralyzes. This prey becomes the food for the larvae. Each species of mud dauber has distinct prey preferences. The prey can be spiders, leafhoppers, crickets or other arthropods. It is interesting to look inside the mud tubes to find the prey. Mud daubers tend to be solitary nesters. Usually mud daubers have long thin "waists".

"Red Wasp", Polistes carolina (Linnaeus) [Vespidae]
One of our common paper wasps is simply called red wasp or Texas red wasp. This species is a dark red color with black wings. The paper wasp nest can be recognized by the paper nest that hangs from a single attachment point. Adults in this family have the wings folded which gives them the appearance of having thin wings.

Carpenter Bee, Xylocopa sp. [Anthophoridae]
Carpenter bees are large robust bees that resemble bumble bees. Carpenter bees generally have the top of the abdomen nearly bare rather than hairy like bumble bees. Carpenter bees nest in wood and may take over existing holes or chew into the wood to make the nest. Each nest is usually a deep tunnel that has room for about 6-10 bee larvae. Male carpenter bees often defend a territory and fly aggressively toward humans in the area. Remember that male bees can not sting but it can still be a bit disconcerting with a bee trying to chase you away. Carpenter bees are sometimes placed in their own family called Xylocopidae.