Pelecinus polyturator

Pelecinus polyturator is a large, glossy black parasitoid wasp and the most common member of the family Pelecinidae. Females are immediately recognizable by their extraordinarily elongated, cylindrical, articulated metasoma, which can exceed 5 cm in length and gives the wasp a total body length of up to 7 cm. The species is distributed across North, Central, and South America, with populations north of Mexico exhibiting a striking sex ratio bias: males are extremely rare, comprising only about 4% of collection records, suggesting widespread parthenogenesis in temperate regions. The wasp is a specialist parasitoid of scarab beetle larvae, particularly June beetles (Phyllophaga spp.), with females using their elongated abdomen to probe soil and deposit eggs directly onto grubs.