One of two similar ichneumon wasps I saw yesterday around the trunks of very large trees. I’ve never seen this species before. This is what keeps me looking.
I think she’s a Cryptus. Note the long, harpoon-like ovipositor. She is looking for moth larvae to jab her eggs into. She kept moving, but hardly flew. Wings constantly flicking. I took dozens of pictures to get these passable ones.
There are a lot of ichneumon wasp species out there. This one was easy to narrow down to genus because of that orange abdomen.
Cryptus albitarsis, White-footed Cryptus Wasp, perhaps. That’s the most common species. The “feet” do look pretty pale in some of these images.
Last licks in before the cold…
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