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MUTILLIDAE
THE SHARECROPPER LEGEND: In dirt-farmer lingo this is the ‘Cow Killer Ant’. It is known for it vicious painful sting. Often encountered in the soft plowed ground of a field crop, it is near impossible to kill this critter. One can ‘stomp it into the ground’ and it will immediately back out of the footprint and scamper off unharmed. They are tough! The best way to kill it was to borrow another hoe and squash the cow killer between the blades of the hoes.
THE ACADEMIC VIEW: The sharecroppers probably never knew that this was the female of the Velvet Wasp or Velvet Ant. She typically invades the nests of ground dwelling bees or wasps and lays an egg near each larva or pupa of the host. The hatching egg of this wasp devours the host form within a couple of weeks. The exoskeleton is very hard. This protects them from the host species while also conserving moisture. The males are winged, and in some species actually carry the females aloft while mating. About 400 species in the USA. Most active just a few hours before dark. Just like other wasps they are: Class: Insecta; Order: Hymenoptera; and family: Mutillidae.
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Cute as a velvet ant wasp can be. Nice macro detail. We have a new member @susannah who also specializes in photographing creepy crawly things – bugs and slugs. Hope you guys find each other.
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