This is the largest wasp in the genus Trypoxylon with a length of approximately one inch or 25 mm. It is all black except for a white or pale yellow band on the tarsii of the hind legs. The wings have a violacious tint. The male has a conspicuous hook on the underside of the abdomen.
This wasp is probably uncommon in this area. The female shown here was photographed at her nest in a kiosk in the Gifford Road parking lot in Fontenelle Forest in late August.
This wasp is in the sub-family Crabroninae, Square-headed Wasps. The female builds a mud nest in the shape of an organ pipe. Males may guard the nest while the female is building it and while she is provisioning it with spiders for her young. She places 3 to 18 spiders in a cell and then seals it up with mud. While she is in the nest, she makes a loud buzzing sound.
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