Sticky toffee wasp or fly

[Bruce Williams]

Stockgrove Country Park, Beds. On fence below oak - near coniferous wood and meadows.

The stud measures approximately 6mm in diameter.

This insect looked VERY moist and sticky - very much like sticky toffee or old fashioned flypaper.

Difficult subject as it never stopped moving. Help with identification appreciated:



Bruce

[Matt Smith]

One of the Cynipid gall wasps, probably either coming from or going to a nearby Oak tree. Posssibly the species that causes the Oak Apple galls on Oaks.

[Bruce Williams]

Thanks for your help with this one Matt.

You know, I though gall wasps were much smaller than the wasp in my photo however I have found several images via Google of VERY similar looking gall wasps.

Would this be a female do you know?

Bruce

[JRsbugs]

Nice shot Bruce.

Look at my thread, it should explain the size difference.

Cynipidae Andricus sp.?

[ladyhawk]

might be Andricus kollari, marble galls on oak could be a female as they lay their eggs on the new buds in the spring

[Bruce Williams]

Thanks for the link Janet (nice pics) - very interesting and helpful info. There were quite a few similar wasps on the fence this afternoon however most seemed to be covered in short hairs and for various reasons were difficult to photograph.

ladyhawk - Thanks for your help:

I found a great web page on the Oak Marble Gall Wasp, see: Oak Marble gall wasp Andricus kollari . Apparently the adult wasp emerge from March (to June) and of course they look VERY similar to the wasp in my photo - the discription suggests a female.

Bruce

[Torymus]

Can't make up my mind on this one. Andricus species and an agamic female. The bright orange colour of this specimen is typical of the Andricus species females (usually with varying amount of black or dark chestnut). Not a good idea to go by colour to identify the species though. It is not oak apple causer because this species is wingless in this generation. Probably not Andricus kollari because this generation emerges late summer (the generation that emerges in March/June is the sexual generation and looks quite different). Its not Cynips or Neuroterus (lots of these flying now). I have compared the photo with some specimens of many of the Andricus sp. - none are a good match although I would still go for A. quercuscalicis as it is by far the most common Andricus species emerging now. Another brilliant photo - possibly of a species that I have not been able to find and rear. How annoying!

[Bruce Williams]

Torymus - Thanks for setting out your thoughts on this one. There are quite a few (what I now know to be) gall wasps about in Stockgrove Country Park just now. I photographed a couple today that were particularly hairy (there were several of this type). However as yet I've only come across the one "sticky toffee" wasp.

btw, how do you know that this female is agamic - is it just the time of year or does she look somehow different?

Bruce

[JRsbugs]

This will explain it Bruce....

Andricus quercuscalicis

[Bruce Williams]

Thanks for the link Janet.

Excellent!

Bruce