In the last week or so Western Giant Ichneumonid Wasps (Megarhyssa notrtoni) have oviposited on a dying spruce tree in our yard. Today a female horntail (Xeris indecisus) is ovipositing on the same tree, with a couple male horntails hanging around. The ichneumons parasitize the horntail larvae.

New evolutionary tree for all of the world's bumblebee species, from (1) slow-evolving nuclear genes, (2) fast-evolving mitochondrial genes, and (3) results from genomic data, to provide a complete starting point for comparative studies of all bumblebees www.researchgate.net/publication/...

The ultimate honour 😄

Nice views today during a stroll over some Shropshire Hills

On this year's Earth Day let us marvel at one the more odd wasps that can be found in the High Weald. Mymaromma anomalum is in a genus of its own, and a family on its own. It has net-like wings that are on stalks, a two-part petiole, and bellows on its head. The natural world is truly wondrous.

Starting to spread the word to @gbif.org and @inaturalist.bsky.social uses that @biodivlibrary.bsky.social BHL has its own fancy looking forum as well: forum.biodiversitylibrary.org

In Issue 1 of the #EMM for 2026: new species, new host-plants, distributional records, and novel biological observations covering #Lepidoptera, #Hymenoptera, #Diptera, and #Coleoptera. Read more below 👇, or subscribe now for complete access: tinyurl.com/EMM-subscribe

Wasp on wasp action! www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bt_k...

Dolichomitus tuberculatus. An uncommon pimpline parasitoid of wood-boring Coleoptera. Species often identified by the arrangement of the ovipositor teeth, males by the form of their parameres.

Dichrogaster aestivalis, a Phygadeuontine ichneumonid. Parasitoids of cocooned Neuroptera. #Ichneumonidae #parasitoid

New #IONA feature! The choropleths on the genus page now not only show diversity per state/province, but when you click on one, it will show you the list of recorded species. ichsofna.org/Ichneumonina... #wasps #JS #ichneumonidae #entomology #biodiversity #taxonomy

📢 Rare parasitic wasp found in #Carlisle 😮 Check out this ichneumon wasp that was found by one of our volunteers, Jane Orgee, in an oak tree at our Gosling Sike site. 👀 #Cumbria #LakeDistrict (1/3)

Volume 41 – Ciarán Byrne reports on Microterys seyon, a parasitoid wasp new to Ireland from Co. Carlow, and comments on the genus . For subscription details visit: irishnaturalistsjournal.org #IrishNaturalistsJournal #Zoology #Wasps

Von #Diplazontinae, einer kleinen Unterfamilie der #Schlupfwespen ist bekannt, dass die ♂️mit ihren Antennen die der ♀️ so umschlingen, dass sich drüsige Sinnesfelder an den jeweiligen Antennen berühren. #artenvielfalt #natur #nature #insekten #Ichneumonidae #insects #Hautflügler #Hymenoptera

Its WORLD WASP DAY!

Wroughtonia spinator (Lepeletier & Serville, 1827) first record for Shropshire. A rarely recorded species in the U.K. Parasitoids of cerambycid beetles

Volume 8 (1) of @integsyst.bsky.social was published on 30 June 2025. It includes the descriptions of 7 new genera and 31 new species of insects. The articles are Open Access and available for download at @bioone.bsky.social: tinyurl.com/yeytj2bh

Male description, bionomics, and phylogenetic placement of Phytodietus (Weisia) clavotibialis Shimizu & Konishi (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae: Tryphoninae: Phytodietini), with insights into the subgeneric systematics of the genus Phytodietus Gravenhors https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40531409/

New publication! Review of Tetramopria (Diapriidae) of E Palaearctic - mating behaviour and interactions with host ants. with Ryoji Kawai and Seonwoo Yoon. Free download: www.researchgate.net/publication/...

Smicroplectrus perkinsorum a darwinwasp, collected in Stavanger, Norway

Happy to announce that my paper describing Anisobas irwini and recording two host records for Anisobas coloradensis is finally out! The species name honors the prodigious collector Mike Irwin who collected the holotype. centerforsystematicentomology.org/insecta_mund... #Ichneumonidae #parasioid

🚨 The #EMM's 2nd issue of 2025 is now out! 🚨 We have species new to science (living and in amber); new to Britain; entomological history; and, lengthy taxonomic revisions 👇 More highlights to follow! We're also thrilled welcome Dr Adrian Spalding to the Editorial Board 👏

New Plagiotrypes species from Arizona I'm working on describing. The genus is otherwise known from eastern NA and the wet neotropics, so it was surprising to discover this one from an arid mountain in southern Arizona.

Lathrolestes verticalis (Brischke, 1871) a male, I have seen only one previous specimen record from England, collected in 1941. It has also been found in Scotland and Ireland, but not yet recorded from Wales as far as I know #Ichneumonidae

Diphyus latebricola #parasitoid #newtobritain. Grateful to @entmonmag.bsky.social for all their support in bringing this to publication. tinyurl.com/5c5xvh9b

Diphyus latebricola www.researchgate.net/publication/... #Ichneumonidae #parasitoid #newtobritain

DONE. I may have to do little adjustments and fixes here and there, but overall I'm happy with how this turned out in the end. 🥳 48 different wasps from around the world! #Wasps #Hymenoptera #Apocrita #Aculeata #Parasitica #TraditionalArt #Illustration

The BEES were good again this week, here are my top two... Scarcely distinguishable gorgeous ginger B. muscorum and B. laesus from Kyrgyzstan collected by Denis Michez, Villu Soon, Simone Flaminio, & Paolo Rosa (credit to @weratedogs.com)

Read my paper to find out the etymology of the names of my wasps! I think they're fun but then again I'm rather biased bdj.pensoft.net/article/1229...

All of this year’s Christmas presents solved as it’s due out in November… @pelagic.bsky.social @georgemcgavin.bsky.social pelagicpublishing.com/products/the...

#Bioblitz2025 ⚡️ Do | 27.03. | 17 Uhr | Schloss Rosenstein Mini-BioBlitz-Exkursion im Rosensteinpark Dr. Holger Thüs nimmt euch mit zu den geheimnisvollsten Bewohnern des Parks: Pilze, Algen, Flechten & Moose. Infos zu #LifeImPark unter: www.naturkundemuseum-bw.de/besuch/veran... 📷H. Thüs

Thanks to the always brilliant @gavinbroad.bsky.social for an amazing Ctenopelmatinae workshop with the Tanyptera Tust.

Euryproctus annulatus, female. Hosts are a variety of tenthredinid sawflies

NEW publication! Gall wasps associated with buds of Holm oak Quercus ilex in Britain: Plagiotrochus britaniae new to Britain (Scotland, England & Wales), Saphonecrus barbotini new to Britain and Ceroptres cerri new host record. FREE download here: www.researchgate.net/publication/...

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to secure funding to expand my ichneumonid AI ID tool on ichsofna.org. But if any curator is interested in becoming self-sufficient with my AI workflow (imaging to deployment), I'd be happy to help set up the system for a reasonable contract fee.

Made it into the news! Now if I can only get this kind of coverage for my big monographs with 70 new microparasitoids... 🧪🐝

Malaise Trap Polka Dots vs. Biodiversity Smudge: Similar latitudinal data deficiency gradients for DNA barcodes and all data. Read more in "Illuminating Entomological Dark Matter with DNA Barcodes in an Era of Insect Decline, Deep Learning, and Genomics" Ann. Rev. Entomol.: doi.org/10.1146/annu...

I said I wouldn't post an update until completely finished, but given the circumstances, I'll just post where I'm at. Masona popeye will be replaced with Ypsilonigaster tiger. I have 7 left to do. I hope they're accurate enough. I can always redraw the ones with mistakes. Peace. 🕊️ #Wasps

🚨 First issue of the #EMM for 2025 is out now! 🚨 We're also very pleased to welcome Dr Andrew Chick, Dr Danniella Sherwood, and Professor Evandson José dos Anjos Silva to the journal's editorial team.

Find out what the IUCN Bumblebee Specialist Group has been up to around the world during 2024 - reports from regional coordinators www.researchgate.net/publication/...

Dolichomitus quercicolus www.ingentaconnect.com/content/pemb... #Ichneumonidae #parasitoid #newwaspfoundinbritain

I’m thrilled to announce the first chapter of my PhD, finally out on my bday😍🎉🎉 Saproxylic beetles and their complicated relantionship with sun exposure☀️🪲 #ecology #saproxylic #communityecology #macroecology #beetles #deadwood resjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

@ionace.bsky.social and I identified and databased 6,600 UK ichneumonoids light-trapped by an amazing crew of moth trappers in 2024. Wonderful dataset. Recent highlights: first Rogas luteus for over 100 years and Enicospilus myricae, haven’t seen since I described it in 2016.

Liotryphon caudatus, a parasitoid of Lepidoptera under bark #Ichneumonidae #Hymenoptera

A group of students came back from the woods today clutching this monster - a Sabre Wasp Rhyssa persuasoria. The body is fully 4cm long, the ovipositor doubles that. Absolute beast! #30DaysWild #FieldCourseFortnight

Banchus sp. (Banchinae) according to Jaswinder Boparai. https://twitter.com/kiwibyrne/status/1672670532934815745

A rather handsome Netelia tarsata found on the South Downs near Alfriston yesterday. Ichneumons are usually beyond my id capability, but I feel reasonably sure of this one. UKWildlife #wasps #Ichneumon