Giant wasp revisited

Enough pussying around with scenic sunsets, back to business.

This is the same wasp that I blipped about a week ago, but this time I was able to get up close and personal.

You would expect these large wasps to limit themselves to the higher, more accessible blooms, with their two and a half inch wingspan. But, both this spider wasp and the large black megascolia spend most of their time scrambling through the lower stems, preferring to climb to their chosen nectar holes rather than flying. This makes a lot of sense given their extreme size and bulk, seeing as they can pick up 4 or 5 meals for the cost of only one flight.

This preference for dense bush also protects them from their predators, the birds, but it also means their wings take a lot of abuse, which can be seen in this image.

Dave