r/waspaganda

Wasps are essentially defensive and only sting when they feel threatened, swatted at, or when their nest is approached.

So if that's all the ammo you've got for wasp hate, I suggest you reconsider...

Wasps save farmers over $416 billion annually. Across all 100,000 species, they are essential to global ecosystems. As earth's ultimate pest controllers, pollinators, and natural recyclers, they protect crops, support plant diversity, and sustain the food web.

So for those who also want to argue wasps are useless, sorry... That's also untrue.

The majority of wasp species lay their eggs inside or on a host insect (like a caterpillar or beetle). When the larvae hatch, they consume the host, providing highly specific, natural biological pest control.

Without wasps, ecosystems and agricultural farmlands would be overrun with destructive insects, requiring billions more in chemical pesticide usage.

Follow me on insta and other socials @leifcollectsbugs

Possibly a Mexican Honey Wasp variant, or a Mason Wasp, but I can’t find a definitive photo match online.

I pass under them every day with no incident. Hopefully they won’t bother any family or delivery people. Anyone know what kind they are? I live in Floresville, kinda south/central Texas.

There’s are tons of thread waisted wasps in my garden meadow. I left this quarter of my garden to do whatever it wanted last year and I haven’t messed with it much at all this year. They seem to love it and they are constantly buzzing around the area. They are beneficial for caterpillar control and pollination. I’m guessing they like the undisturbed soil for their burrows as well.

I found an oak gall with two adult wasps wandering around on it. I can't tell if they are male or female, but I don't see long ovipositors. I asked someone who suggested they may be females in the family torymidae getting ready to parasitize the larva inside the gall.

Any wasp people willing to throw in their two sense on who these little wasps are and/or what they might be doing? Thanks!

(Zoomed in photos at the end)

Sorry if I'm posting 2 much lol :' )

Saved this little cutie from the stairs in my house. She was dusty and very tired/hungry. Woke her up with a sugar water Q-tip and sent her on her way. More pics in the comments!

Anyone know what the leg tappies are for? She was very lethargic prior and during the feeding but seems to be doing better now. She also stopped stopped twitching her feets once I set her down outside, with no other immediate signs of pesticide poisoning. Hopefully she'll be okay, especially since it's quite warm out tonight. :)

Sorry if the post seems a little jumbled/disorganized, I was about to go to bed and pass tf out but my parents (and dog) wanted to kill her, so I had to get her out, haha

SW Michigan

either multiple queens decided to overwinter inside my house (unlikely) or this lady is absolutely obsessed with breaking in because this is the second day in a row now where i have had to catch her and release her back outside! and i still have no idea how she keeps getting in. i try to keep an eye out whenever i come in and out of the house but i have yet to catch her in the act.

anyway id love to know what species she is! iNat says V. maculifrons which would be awesome since i usually only see German yellowjackets around here

now all my other bug miis look plain in comparison :')

Was in my bathroom, I put it outside. Unfortunately it's rainy, I hope they'll be okay.

Ixodiphagus hookeri... the name means TICK EATER!

She's currently in the bathroom. I have a butterfly net, but it's way too big for the tiny space she's in. I'd use the cup and paper method, but I'm afraid I'd piss her off, and she'd opt to sting before flying away when released. Is that at all a realistic fear, or do wasps tend to go for flight over fight if given the option when already antagonized? I also have a kill-jar sans kill mechanism for a bigger container if that matters, and I could try to coax her into a little portable bug carrier I have, though I fear too much prodding could also result in a defensive response. I'm not usually scared of wasps, but I have to admit, going to take a piss and seeing a wasp staring at me in a usually lifeless environment made me freak out a bit. My apologies if my adrenaline makes this post sound needlessly frantic.

Also, sorry for the shit photos; the lightbulbs need to be changed, but I've really never had a reason to do so prior to this.