Orchid-dupe Wasp
Male, Face
Orchid-dupe Wasp
Female, in Acacia
| Orchid-dupe Wasp Male, Face | | Orchid-dupe Wasp Female, in Acacia | | ||
 | Class: | Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) | |||
| Order: | Ant Bee Wasps (Hymenoptera) | ||||
| Family: | Ichneumon Wasp (Wasp: Ichneumonoidea: Ichneumonidae) iNaturalist Observation | ||||
| Species: | Orchid-dupe Wasp (Lissopimpla excelsa) | ||||
| This Photo: | 🔍Male, Head & Thorax🔎 | ||||
| Other names: | Dusky-winged Ichneumonid or Orchid Dupe Wasp | ||||
Thank you Anthony Paul & Tony and Jenny Dominelli for confirming the id of this species for us General Species Information: Found on Ellura (in the Murray Mallee, SA), the Adelaide Hills and elsewhere Females are ~17mm long (head & body). A very long ovipositor at ~8mm long, and even longer antennae ~17mm (as long as the body & head). Males are smaller, but variable, at ~11.5 to ~16.5mm, with the antennae about the same length as the body. The female antennae has a pale stripe in the middle that's missing from the male antennae. Notice the male is more chiselled looking, with more patterns (yellow & black). They have 3 toes. Thanks to Thomas Mesaglio, from our facebook group, who gave us a really amazing insight into these wasps: " 'Orchid dupe' refers to the orchid species Cryptostylis leptochila, which looks similar to the males of Lissopimpla excelsa and tricks them into attempting to mate with it (and thus pollinating it)." | |||||
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