Animal profile

Ichneumon Wasp

Megarhyssa macrurus

InsectaDeciduous woodland with standing dead and dying timber

Field profile

Megarhyssa macrurus is a large ichneumonid wasp with an extraordinarily long ovipositor. Females locate the larvae of horntail wood wasps deep inside trunks and lay eggs on them. Adults are harmless to people and do not sting.

Published field notes

2023-08-03

Ichneumon Wasp

This wasp drills through wood to reach prey

A female Megarhyssa detects a horntail larva several centimetres inside a trunk, then works a hair-thin ovipositor through solid wood to lay a single egg on it. The ovipositor is longer than her body.

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