• Hello!

    Either you have not registered on this site yet, or you are registered but have not logged in. In either case, you will not be able to use the full functionality of this site until you have registered, and then logged in after your registration has been approved.

    Registration is FREE, so please register so you can participate instead of remaining a lurker....

    Please be certain that the location field is correctly filled out when you register. All registrations that appear to be bogus will be rejected. Which means that if your location field does NOT match the actual location of your registration IP address, then your registration will be rejected.

    Sorry about the strictness of this requirement, but it is necessary to block spammers and scammers at the door as much as possible.

Scary bugs! HELP!!!

texastailfeathers

texastailfeathers

New member
I found two very freaky-ass insects in my flea trap this afternoon. Can someone please identify them for me? I live in north Texas (Dallas/Fort Worth suburb), in a townhouse development. The following trees are in my neighborhood: mulberry (fruit-bearing), willow, cottonwood, ornamental bamboo. We have fuzzy caterpillars and aphids because of the mulberry tree, so I sincerely *hope* to hear that these freaky bugs are beneficial, non-stinging wasps. I've browsed photos of beneficial wasps though, and the closest I can find is an Ichneumon Wasp. Is it one of those? Do those sting? :eek: Please tell me no.

One photo is fuzzy, but I photographed a penny next to the bugs so you can see how tiny they are. If you will look at the left side of the clearer photo, you will see a flea (they're like an effing plague this year). So you can tell these bugs are very small!

Ok, now someone please tell me what they are so I can sleep at night. I am not an insect person, and they are FREAKING ME THE HELL OUT!!! :sidestep:
 

Attachments

  • 100_1738.JPG
    100_1738.JPG
    31.5 KB · Views: 79
  • 100_1739.JPG
    100_1739.JPG
    30.8 KB · Views: 79
desertanimal said:
As small as they are, I wouldn't worry about it.
Click to expand...

Easy for you to say. I am not scared of much, but I can't handle insects...especially stinging insects. I will obsess over this until I am absolutely certain they're harmless.

"Hello. My name is Jennifer and I have an irrational fear of insects." :rolleyes: :crazy02:
 
We have those around here too, I'm pretty sure that they do not sting. In fact I had a major tent worm problem with my oak tree this year and I'm pretty sure these guys thinned them out for me. I think these ones inject their eggs into other insects but I'm not certain. Sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite! lol couldn't help myself. ;)

---Kenny
 
DogStar5988 said:
We have those around here too, I'm pretty sure that they do not sting. In fact I had a major tent worm problem with my oak tree this year and I'm pretty sure these guys thinned them out for me. I think these ones inject their eggs into other insects but I'm not certain. Sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite! lol couldn't help myself. ;)

---Kenny
Click to expand...

Oh man...you only think you were joking. If you only knew... :grin01:

The fleas this year have driven me crazy. I imagine them everywhere. I got a few bites one night and then waged an all-out war on them. I bet I've spent close to $200 on flea sprays and traps. I even went out after dark and treated my two neighbors' yards with flea killer. My husband almost put me away when I inspected our bed sheets with a magnifying glass. :shrugs:

I'm a psycho when it comes to bugs. :flames:
 
This one looks pretty similar, see, good wasp. :grin01:

---Kenny
 

Attachments

  • 477px-Aleiodes_indiscretus_wasp_parasitizing_gypsy_moth_caterpillar.jpg
    477px-Aleiodes_indiscretus_wasp_parasitizing_gypsy_moth_caterpillar.jpg
    80.1 KB · Views: 78
Get a fine-mesh mosquito net. I actually think they're fun to sleep under. Perhaps that's because I've only used them when I'm in fun places, but either way, they're fun and they do give you some peace of mind. I admit to being a bit on edge when I'm sleeping somewhere where I know I'll awake with dozens of bites for not having one.

texastailfeathers said:
Oh man...you only think you were joking. If you only knew... :grin01:

The fleas this year have driven me crazy. I imagine them everywhere. I got a few bites one night and then waged an all-out war on them. I bet I've spent close to $200 on flea sprays and traps. I even went out after dark and treated my two neighbors' yards with flea killer. My husband almost put me away when I inspected our bed sheets with a magnifying glass. :shrugs:

I'm a psycho when it comes to bugs. :flames:
Click to expand...
 
I did some research for you. Those are ichneumon wasps. They feed on other insects and are sometimes released in areas to control ant and bee populations. They DO NOT STING. Their scary looking tails are used to bore holes in wood to lay eggs. So you can sleep well! :)
 
Rich in KY said:
I did some research for you. Those are ichneumon wasps. They feed on other insects and are sometimes released in areas to control ant and bee populations. They DO NOT STING. Their scary looking tails are used to bore holes in wood to lay eggs. So you can sleep well! :)
Click to expand...

THANK YOU!!!! :)

I thought they might be, but I wasn't sure. You're my hero. :cheers:
 
You are from Texas and afraid of that little thing? I'm sorry, not being rude. But when I think of Texas, I think HUGE spiders. LOL. My phobia. (I'm not a bug person either) :crazy02:
 
debb said:
You are from Texas and afraid of that little thing? I'm sorry, not being rude. But when I think of Texas, I think HUGE spiders. LOL. My phobia. (I'm not a bug person either)
Click to expand...

See, that's the funny thing...spiders don't bother me at all! Just insects. But that's the thing about irrational fears...they are irrational. At least I know I'm crazy, and I'm mostly okay with it. :crazy02:

Anyway...the wasps are, in fact, ichneumon wasps as I originally thought they might be. They don't sting humans (we'll see :rolleyes: ), and I'm supposed to want them around to kill the icky caterpillars that attack my mulberry tree. I don't know about wanting them, but I suppose I can learn to tolerate them as long as they mind their own business.

But if a few more of them meet their demise in my flea trap, that's okay too. :grin01:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top