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Xiphydria maculata
Spotted Wood Wasp
Xiphydria maculata is a wood wasp in the family Xiphydriidae. Adults are known to visit flowers for nectar. The larvae develop as borers in dead or dying hardwood trees, particularly maple and other deciduous species. This species is part of a group of primitive wasps that lack the narrow waist characteristic of most other Hymenoptera.
Xorides peniculus
Xorides peniculus is a species of ichneumon wasp described by Townes in 1960. It belongs to the genus Xorides within the family Ichneumonidae. The species has been documented in North America, including observations during the 2025 City Nature Challenge in the Kansas City metropolitan area. Like other members of its genus, it is presumed to be a parasitoid of wood-boring beetle larvae, though specific host records for this species are not well documented.