Weevil Wasp – 7/7/18

Observer: Paul Lauenstein

Observation Date: 7/7/18

Observation Time: 1:45 p.m.

Observation Location: Moose Hill Farm (TTOR)

Common Name: Weevil Wasp

Scientific Name: Cerceris

Comments: Members of the genus Cerceris hunt weevils and other beetles. Females dig nests in the ground along roads or in areas with loose sand or soil like baseball fields, parks and beaches. They compact the material and create cells where they lay a fertilized egg. They fly off, in search of future food for their larvae.

Female Weevil Wasps bite their prey and paralyze them. The weevil or beetle is then brought back to the nest and stuffed inside a cell where they will remain paralyzed. A hatching wasp larva will immediately begin feeding on the living, paralyzed weevil or beetle. Once the wasp has grown, it will pupate into its adult form and leave the nest.

More Information: Insect Identification

This wasp is small – less than 1/2″ long.