Sphex ichneumoneus

What a gorgeous wasp. Feeding on Monarda punctata, whose flowers are rather attractive, too.
Great Golden Sand-digger. As the common name suggests, they nest in solitary holes in the ground. Adults feed on nectar. The female provisions her young in these sandy nest caves with paralyzed Orthoptera: crickets, katydids, grasshoppers.The back of the thorax is hairy, too, something I’ve never noticed before.

This wasp is found from Canada down to South America. Here’s an abstract on nest site selection.

More reflections on Europe’s (and the world’s) loss of insect life.
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“…today any liberalism which is not also radicalism is irrelevant and doomed.” John Dewey said that in the 1930s. His view of democracy, which he argued was only as strong as the people supporting it, is as timely as ever.