Good Bug—Bad Bug?

I was standing at the bottom step of my front porch talking to my eight-year-old son. It was a gorgeous day, warm, clear and sunny. I looked down at some errant mint blooming next to my lawn. I had this sort of dumb-looking contented smile on my face.

I saw this huge thing flying manically from flower to flower. The smile on my face began to fade when I realized the thing I was looking at was a huge dangerous-looking wasp.

It was the biggest wasp I’d seen since I watched a tarantula wasp searching the rainforest floor in Costa Rica for it’s favorite victim. Yep, that’s right, you guessed it, a tarantula. (Ick, that thing was huge.)

Anyway, I grabbed my son by the shoulders, pulled him back and told him to go in the house. I was about to get out my electric yellow-jacket racquet and zap the wasp to Kingdom Come when I thought for a moment.

Hey that thing is not a pollen gatherer. It’s a meat eater. It’s a CARNIVORE. It’s probably getting rid of some pests on my flowers. It’s probably ridding my garden of little unwanted creatures that eat my plants.

So my son and I watched him as he flew from flower to flower and munched on what I hoped were animals that my garden would be better off without.

See you in a few days.

I’m off to Yosemite.

Comments

[Ruth]

It's a big bug but I bet all those aphids will be on the run. Have a great time while you're away.

[Genie]

Have a good trip -- and thanks for stopping to take pics of the wasp! I had no idea wasps were meat-eaters...this was a good education!

[Jacqueline]

What a cool post. Hooray for big horrible bugs?

I wish I was going to Yosemite! Happy trails, y'all!

[kate]

Enjoy your time in Yosemite, lucky you!

I think I like wasps now ... they've never bothered me thankfully.

[Heather's Garden]

Ugh -- I hate wasps. I've never been stung and they freak me out! I was intrigued by your awesome photos though and did a little googling. I found this on whatsthatbug.com:

Great Golden Digger Wasp
(07/17/2005) Great Golden Digging Wasp - Ky
I found a wasp digging in the back yard. From your sight it appears to be a Great Golden Digging Wasp. Last year I found a Cow Killer in my garage. Trying to identify that I found your great site. Keep up the good work.
Thank You,
David

Hi David,
Thank you so much for using the site as a research tool. So many people just send in photos and questions when a little searching will give them the answers. Your Great Golden Digger Wasp, Sphex ichneumoneus preys upon crickets, camel crickets and katydids. The adult builds the burrow and provisions 2-7 cells with anesthetized prey for the larval food. Adults frequent flowers for nectar and are active July and August.