This Ichneumon wasp is about 7/8 inch long, not including the ovipositor. The head and thorax are black. The abdomen is red-orange. The legs are yellow and orange. The antennae are black. The black ovipositor is at least as long as the body and head. This wasp was identified by volunteer experts at the BugGuide website.
The frequency of occurrence is not known. The female wasp shown here was photographed in Fontenelle Forest in early April.
The larvae of Dolichomitus irritator are parasitoids of many woodboring insect larvae including long-horned beetles, weevils, metallic wood-boring beetles and some moths that are wasp look-alikes. This wasp is in the subfamily Pimplinae which has 180 species in 28 genera in North America.
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