Ichneumon Wasp
Characteristics: There are several different species, each with its own color variations. All have the wasp body shape, the abdomen being much longer than the rest of the body.
Females may have a long, needle-like ovipositor which is often mistaken as a stinger. The ovipositor acts like a syringe, injecting eggs deep into wood where the larvae will feed on other insect larvae already deposited there.
Giant Ichneumons tend to live in wooded areas and throughout all of North America, though they do stay away from the arid and hot desert regions and featureless plain states.
Interestingly enough, the Giant Ichneumon adult versions do not eat at all. Larvae versions are simple parasites of Pigeon Horntail larvae and receive their nutrients in that fashion.
Variations of the Giant Ichneumon include the Eastern Giant Ichneumon, the Lunar Giant Ichneumon and the Western Giant Ichneumon. These can all be found in their respective habitats consisting of Canada, the United States of America and Mexico.
General Adult Size (Length):
10mm to 19mm
(0.39in to 0.75in)
Identifying Colors: brown; yellow; black; orange
North American reach includes (may not be limited to): Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Delaware, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee, Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado, Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington, Montana
Category: Bee, Ant, Wasp and Similar
Common Name: Ichneumon Wasp
Scientific Name: (Megarhyssa macrurus)
 Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Ichneumonidae
Genus: Megarhyssa
Species: macrurus
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