#1703 to 1708 - Tiphiid Wasps
Given I’ve just discussed orchids that are pollinated by deluded male Tiphiid wasps, here’s a few of the wasps. Unsurprisingly, since the last few months are peak wasp-orchid and general wildflower season here in WA, there’s a lot of the Tiphiid Flower wasps about - at least 5 and more likely 6 different species in these photos. Actually telling you which species these are, on the other hand, is a different matter entirely, not least because the taxonomy of the family is desperately in need of revision. There’s ongoing argument about whether a lot of them should be split off into the Thynnidae.
Flower Wasps are solitary wasps that usually parasitise beetle larvae, most often scarabs. The females are wingless, and climb to the top of grass stems to wait for a male to find them, then cling to him with their massive jaws until they can lock their genetalia together. The only food she’ll eat as an adult is nectar she can sip as she’s carried around, or more likely nectar he’s gorged on and passed through his body, which is what the ones doubled back underneath are doing. Then she’ll drop off and dig back into the ground seeking a beetle grub or mole cricket to paralyse and parasitise.
