Field Guide

The northern crab spider has many spiny hairs covering the top surfaces of the carapace, abdomen, and legs, and it has usually has greenish-yellow or yellow-brown markings.

The swift crab spider has many spiny hairs covering the top of its body and legs, and it often has a light pinkish-tan cast.

The green crab spider has spines, and the entire body and legs are pale green to silvery white. Like other crab spiders, its legs extend outward from the sides, and it can walk in any direction.

The female black giant ichneumon wasp deposits her eggs through wood. The larvae eat the grubs of wood-boring insects.

The female long-tailed giant ichneumon wasp deposits her eggs through wood. The larvae eat the grubs of the pigeon tremex, a wood-boring horntail wasp.

The banded longhorn is a common species of longhorned beetle. Adults visit flowers for nectar, and larvae feed on decaying oak and hickory wood.

Red-headed ash borers resemble wasps, but they are harmless to people. The colors and markings are distinctive. Their larvae feed on a variety of dead or dying hardwoods, helping the decomposition process and enriching the soil.

The locust borer is a longhorned beetle whose larvae tunnel into the trunks of black locust. The colorful black and yellow adults are often seen in late summer as they feed on the pollen of goldenrod and other flowers.

Poecilopompilus spider wasps provision their nests with orbweaver spiders. They dig nest burrows into the ground and therefore prefer sandy or other workable substrates.

Spider wasps in genus Entypus are bluish black and usually have some amount of amber color on their dark, smoky wings. Some species have bright yellow antennae.