Band-winged Orange Braconid Wasp - Disophrys sp.

Family BRACONIDAE


Body length 15mm

This wasp is orange in colour with black head and black antenna. Its legs are orange. Its wings are also tinted with orange with black bands.


In early summer Oct 2007 along Bulimba Creek in Wishart, on a small plant (Hovea sp.) we saw five to six Band-winged Orange Braconid Wasps flying up and down. Came closer to the plant, we saw the whole small plant was infected by many caterpillars (Tree Lucerne Moth caterpillars). Those wasps were trying to lay eggs on those caterpillars.



All caterpillars on the plant, included the large and small ones, were loosely surrounded themselves by silks as a kind of protection. Those silk may hinder some wasps from moving closer to them. But the wasps moved carefully and seems they had attacked most of the caterpillars.




Male



This wasp seems mimicking the Coreid Bugs.

Reference:
1. Northern Territory Insects, A Comprehensive Guide CD - Graham Brown, 2009,
2. Insects of Australia, CSIRO, Division of Entomology, Melbourne University Press, 2nd Edition 1991, p 949.
3. Wasps - family Braconidae - lifeunseen.com, by Nick Monaghan.