Ectemnius ID and questions...

[Africa]

I found this Ectemnius (I think!) yesterday, it behaved as if it was its first day out, a bit dazzled and not willing to fly yet walking on the path next to a log pile which I know these wasps use to breed. Is it a male? The antennae look different to others I've seen. Is there any keys I can use for ID? I have plenty of photos, but I am unsure which are the distinguishing features.

[Matt Smith]

The 'knobbly' bits on the antennae mean, in this case, this is a male. There are keys to Ectemnius in Procter & Yeo - Solitary Wasps - Richmond Publishing but you will need to look at the insects in much greater detail than can be seen in these photos, things like the puncturation on the top of the thorax or the ratio of certain antennal segments are important.

They are a bit like solitary bees in a way - getting to Genus is reasonably easy but getting a confident ID from a photo is in many cases impossible.

[Africa]

Thank you Matt! At least I can tell males from females now.