Ichneumonidae (Darwin Wasps)
About
Observations
Species
The common name for the Ichneumonidae was inspired by a letter that Charles Darwin wrote to Asa Gray on 22 May 1860, where he said, "I cannot persuade myself that a beneficent & omnipotent God would have designedly created the Ichneumonidæ with the express intention of their feeding within the living bodies of caterpillars."
Ichneumonidae
(Darwin Wasps)
(Darwin Wasps)
22 Feb 2026
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Emerged from spider egg sac collected on 28 Jan 26. 5 mm
Ophioninae
(Short-tailed Ichneumonid Wasps)
(Short-tailed Ichneumonid Wasps)
26 Apr 2025
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On sheet with black light\r\n\r\n@bclaridge
Gravenhorstiini
5 Apr 2025
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Each spring, one of the first insects I see in the yard are these ichneumonids. They flit around the grass and low shrubs, just above ground level. They don\'t stay around long, though.\r\n\r\nAny idea what they might be, @bclaridge?
Ichneumonidae
(Darwin Wasps)
(Darwin Wasps)
11 Jul 2024
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On raspberry plant
Associated Species: Rubus idaeus (Red Raspberry)
Ichneumoninae
24 Jun 2024
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On hollyhock leaf
Associated Species: Alcea rosea (Hollyhock)
Pimpla sp.
24 Jun 2024
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On Pacific Ninebark leaf
Associated Species: Physocarpus capitus (Pacific Ninebark)
Gravenhorstiini
20 Apr 2024
The first ones I've seen this spring. There were quite a few flying just above the ground in the backyard raspberry patch.
I netted one, cooled it down, took some (bad) photos, and released it.
Campopleginae
26 Aug 2023
Malaise Trap, 26 Aug 23
IDed by Nathaniel Green at Barr Museum on 14 June 24
Female, 6 mm
Campopleginae
8 Jun 2023
From Malaise trap set on June 8-10, 2023.
IDed at Barr Museum by Nathaniel Green on 14 Jun 24
Female, 13 mm
Knocked the head off while trying to get a better photo for Brandon's subfamily classifier.
Exenterini
8 Jun 2023
Malaise Trap, 8-10 June 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green at Barr Museum on 14 June 24
7 mm
...
Tryphoninae
8 Jun 2023
Marlise Trap, 8 Jun 23
IDed by Nathaniel Green at Barr Museum on 14 Jun 24
Female, 9 mm
Campopleginae
8 Jun 2023
Malaise Trap, 8 Jun 23
IDed by Nathaniel Green at Barr Museum on 14 June 24
Female, 11 mm
Tryphoninae
8 Jun 2023
Malaise Trap, 8 Jun 23
IDed by Nathaniel Green at Barr Museum on 14 June 24
Male?, 10 mm
Tryphonini
8 Jun 2023
Malaise trap, 8 Jun 23
IDed by Nathaniel Green at Barr Museum on 14 June 24
Female, 10 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
Identified by Nathaniel Green
~ 7 mm
Malaise trap 8-10 June 2023
Banchinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green
c.f. Banchinae
Malaise Trap
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
Identified by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set June 8-10, 2023.
~ 7 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
Identified by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set June 8-10, 2023.
Length ~ 7 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set 8-10 June 23
~ 6 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set 8-10 June 2023
~ 6 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set 8-10 June 2023
~ 7 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
8-10 June 23
~ 6 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
8-10 June 23
~ 7 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set from 8-10 June 23
~ 7 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set 8-10 June 2023.
~ 6 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set 8-10 June 2023.
~ 5 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set 8-10 June 2023.
~ 5 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set 8-10 June 2023.
~ 6 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set 8-10 June 2023.
~ 9 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set 8-10 June 2023.
~ 10 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set 8-10 June 2023.
~ 6 mm
Tryphonini
8 Jun 2023
Malaise trap, 8 Jun 23
IDed by Nathaniel Green at Barr Museum on 14 June 24
Female, 10 mm
Campopleginae
8 Jun 2023
Malaise Trap, 8 Jun 23
IDed by Nathaniel Green at Barr Museum on 14 June 24
Female, 9 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set 8-10 June 2023.
~ 6 mm
Cryptinae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set 8-10 June 2023.
~ 5 mm
Ichneumoninae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap set 8-10 June 2023
~ 9 mm
Ichneumoninae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap 8-10 June 23
~ 4 mm
Maybe Phaeogenini (N.G.)
Ichneumoninae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green
Malaise Trap, 8 June 2023
~7 mm
Ichneumoninae
8 Jun 2023
IDed by Nathaniel Green.
Malaise trap 8-10 June 2023.
~ 13 mm.
Ichneumonini
24 Aug 2022
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Caught this one while it was flying around the woodpile. Took me a half hour and a dozen tries with the net. \r\n13 mm
Xorides californicus
4 May 2022
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Male Xorides with a box elder bug in the background.
Gelis sp.
Female Gelis wasp that emerged today from spider eggs sacs that I collected from my yard on March 9. \r\n6 mm
Gelis sp.
On March 9 I collected some spider egg sacs that I found under a rock in our yard. I put them in a bag to see what would come out. \nToday about a dozen Gelis wasps emerged, mostly females. This is a female on an egg sac.
Gelis sp.
4 Apr 2022
Female Gelis wasp that emerged today from spider eggs sacs that I collected from my yard on March 9.
Gelis sp.
4 Apr 2022
On March 9, 2022 I collected some spider egg sacs that I found under a rock in our yard. I put them in a bag to see what would come out.
About a dozen Gelis wasps emerged, mostly females. This is one of the males.
~ 4mm ...
Gelis sp.
Emerged today from spider egg sac that I found on March 9. This male mated with one of the female Gelis wasps in the plastic bag that contained the sample.
Phygadeuontini
4 Apr 2022
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On March 9, 2022, I collected some spider egg sacs that I found under a rock in our yard. I put them in a bag to see what would come out.\r\n\r\nOn April 4, a dozen wasps emerged, mostly females. Almost immediately, the males appeared to mate with th ...
Gelis sp.
4 Apr 2022
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On March 9, 2022 I collected some spider egg sacs that I found under a rock in our yard. I put them in a bag to see what would come out.\r\n\r\nAbout a dozen Gelis wasps emerged, mostly females. This is one of the males. Length ~ 4 mm.
Campopleginae
17 Apr 2019
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About a dozen or so of these emerged from a Trichiosoma pupa that I collected on March 31 from a Douglas Hawthorn twig. \r\n\r\n~ 8 mm\r\n\r\nI took them to the Barr Entomological Museum at the University of Idaho for identification.\r\n
Ichneumonidae
(Darwin Wasps)
(Darwin Wasps)
10 Apr 2019
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On spruce stump\r\n6 deg C\r\n~ 22 mm\r\n\r\n
Ichneumonidae
(Darwin Wasps)
(Darwin Wasps)
1 Aug 2018
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Exploring the bark of an old silver maple tree\n~ 1 cm
Perithous scurra neomexicanus
17 Jun 2018
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body length ~ 13 mm\r\n\r\n\"This is likely Perithous s. neomexicanus, the western subspecies. The host is an aphid wasp in the genus Pemphredon. See reference here.\" BugGuide\r\n\r\nThat makes sense since these ichneumon wasps are hanging out aroun ...
Ichneumoninae
8 Jun 2018
Malaise Trap, 8 June 2023
11 mm
Xorides sp.
4 Jun 2018
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This is the larger of the two female species (?) that were on the spruce stump today. This one has a black abdomen and black legs; the other two individuals were smaller with mostly red abdomens and hind legs.
Xorides sp.
24 May 2018
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Female ovipositing in a spruce stump. The whole process took about 90 minutes.
Xorides sp.
24 May 2018
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male (right) and female (left) -- the same ones as in the previous two observations
Spilichneumon sp.
30 Apr 2017
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~ 25 mm\r\nOn front porch. 10 deg C, cloudy and windy
Subfamilies
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(
[0] => Array
(
[href] =>
[img] => 
[label] =>
Metopiinae (1, 3) [name] => Metopiinae [count] => 1 ) [1] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Anomaloninae (1, 15) [name] => Anomaloninae [count] => 1 ) [2] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Banchinae (2, 3) [name] => Banchinae [count] => 2 ) [3] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Campopleginae (1, 5) [name] => Campopleginae [count] => 1 ) [4] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Cryptinae (2, 29) [name] => Cryptinae [count] => 2 ) [5] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Ichneumoninae (3, 13) [name] => Ichneumoninae [count] => 3 ) [6] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Ophioninae (1, 2) [name] => Ophioninae [count] => 1 [cmnm] =>
(Short-tailed Ichneumonid Wasps) ) [7] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Phygadeuontinae (1, 12) [name] => Phygadeuontinae [count] => 1 ) [8] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Pimplinae (4, 13) [name] => Pimplinae [count] => 4 ) [9] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Xoridinae (2, 30) [name] => Xoridinae [count] => 2 ) [10] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Tryphoninae (2, 7) [name] => Tryphoninae [count] => 2 ) [11] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Ctenopelmatinae (1, 1) [name] => Ctenopelmatinae [count] => 1 ) ) Array ( [0] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Pimplinae (4, 13) [name] => Pimplinae [count] => 4 ) [1] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Ichneumoninae (3, 13) [name] => Ichneumoninae [count] => 3 ) [2] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Banchinae (2, 3) [name] => Banchinae [count] => 2 ) [3] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Cryptinae (2, 29) [name] => Cryptinae [count] => 2 ) [4] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Tryphoninae (2, 7) [name] => Tryphoninae [count] => 2 ) [5] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Xoridinae (2, 30) [name] => Xoridinae [count] => 2 ) [6] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Anomaloninae (1, 15) [name] => Anomaloninae [count] => 1 ) [7] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Campopleginae (1, 5) [name] => Campopleginae [count] => 1 ) [8] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Ctenopelmatinae (1, 1) [name] => Ctenopelmatinae [count] => 1 ) [9] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Metopiinae (1, 3) [name] => Metopiinae [count] => 1 ) [10] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Ophioninae (1, 2) [name] => Ophioninae [count] => 1 [cmnm] =>
(Short-tailed Ichneumonid Wasps) ) [11] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] =>
Phygadeuontinae (1, 12) [name] => Phygadeuontinae [count] => 1 ) )
[label] => Metopiinae (1, 3) [name] => Metopiinae [count] => 1 ) [1] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Anomaloninae (1, 15) [name] => Anomaloninae [count] => 1 ) [2] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Banchinae (2, 3) [name] => Banchinae [count] => 2 ) [3] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Campopleginae (1, 5) [name] => Campopleginae [count] => 1 ) [4] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Cryptinae (2, 29) [name] => Cryptinae [count] => 2 ) [5] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Ichneumoninae (3, 13) [name] => Ichneumoninae [count] => 3 ) [6] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Ophioninae (1, 2) [name] => Ophioninae [count] => 1 [cmnm] =>
(Short-tailed Ichneumonid Wasps) ) [7] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Phygadeuontinae (1, 12) [name] => Phygadeuontinae [count] => 1 ) [8] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Pimplinae (4, 13) [name] => Pimplinae [count] => 4 ) [9] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Xoridinae (2, 30) [name] => Xoridinae [count] => 2 ) [10] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Tryphoninae (2, 7) [name] => Tryphoninae [count] => 2 ) [11] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Ctenopelmatinae (1, 1) [name] => Ctenopelmatinae [count] => 1 ) ) Array ( [0] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Pimplinae (4, 13) [name] => Pimplinae [count] => 4 ) [1] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Ichneumoninae (3, 13) [name] => Ichneumoninae [count] => 3 ) [2] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Banchinae (2, 3) [name] => Banchinae [count] => 2 ) [3] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Cryptinae (2, 29) [name] => Cryptinae [count] => 2 ) [4] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Tryphoninae (2, 7) [name] => Tryphoninae [count] => 2 ) [5] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Xoridinae (2, 30) [name] => Xoridinae [count] => 2 ) [6] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Anomaloninae (1, 15) [name] => Anomaloninae [count] => 1 ) [7] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Campopleginae (1, 5) [name] => Campopleginae [count] => 1 ) [8] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Ctenopelmatinae (1, 1) [name] => Ctenopelmatinae [count] => 1 ) [9] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Metopiinae (1, 3) [name] => Metopiinae [count] => 1 ) [10] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Ophioninae (1, 2) [name] => Ophioninae [count] => 1 [cmnm] =>
(Short-tailed Ichneumonid Wasps) ) [11] => Array ( [href] => [img] =>
[label] => Phygadeuontinae (1, 12) [name] => Phygadeuontinae [count] => 1 ) )