Knowledgebase

What is this insect? #877924

Asked July 19, 2024, 1:18 PM EDT

This photo shows one of two such insects that showed up in our bathroom in the past couple of days, one in the sink and the other on the toilet seat (contemplating a drink?). It can move quickly and appears to be able to fly. We scooped each into a battery-powered catch/release gizmo. Hope they're among the good guys. Both were nearly black in color, the main body about an inch or so long; long legs and antennae.

Baltimore City County Maryland

Expert Response

This is a type of solitary wasp. While you can encounter solitary wasps in groups, that's just because they are nesting or hunting in the same habitat, not because they are working together or living in the same nest, the way social wasps do (like yellowjackets, hornets, or paper wasps). Solitary wasp species vastly outnumber social wasp species (Maryland is home to hundreds), and while we can't ID this wasp to exact species, it's probably one of the group that hunts either spiders or crickets as prey for its young. They will not bother people if left alone, and can be caught and let go outside or ushered out of an open window. They are probably getting in through worn-out door weather-stripping, torn window screening, or some other gap/crack in an exterior wall, or just flying in through an open door, since they do not nest indoors.

Miri

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