Grass-carrying-wasp
Guides
Isodontia auripes
Brown-legged Grass-carrier Wasp, brown-legged grass-carrier
Isodontia auripes, the brown-legged grass-carrier wasp, is a solitary thread-waisted wasp in the family Sphecidae. The species is known for its distinctive nesting behavior: females construct nests in pre-existing cavities such as window tracks, wind chimes, or abandoned carpenter bee tunnels, filling them with dry grass and provisioning them with paralyzed tree crickets (Oecanthus spp.) as food for their larvae. The wasp is non-aggressive toward humans and has been observed using nests made by Xylocopa virginica or mining bees. Larvae feed for approximately three days before pupating for two days.
Isodontia elegans
Elegant Grass-carrying Wasp
Isodontia elegans is a solitary, nest-provisioning thread-waisted wasp in the family Sphecidae. Commonly known as the elegant grass-carrying wasp, it hunts orthopteran prey including tree crickets and katydids, which it paralyzes and stores in nest cells for its developing larvae. The species is notable for using pre-existing cavities—particularly window tracks and wind chime tubes in suburban settings—lining them with finely chewed grass fibers that serve as both partitions between cells and defensive barriers against parasites.
Isodontia mexicana
Mexican Grass-carrying Wasp, Grass-carrying Wasp
Isodontia mexicana is a solitary sphecid wasp native to North America that has become a successful invasive species in Europe since the 1960s. Females construct nests in pre-existing cavities such as hollow stems, abandoned beetle tunnels, or even window tracks, lining them with grass fragments. They provision nests with paralyzed orthopteran prey—primarily small katydids (Tettigoniidae) and tree crickets (Gryllidae, particularly Oecanthinae)—to feed their larvae. The species is notable for its splayed wing posture at rest and has been observed visiting diverse flowering plants for nectar.
Isodontia philadelphica
Grass-carrying Wasp
Isodontia philadelphica is a solitary wasp in the family Sphecidae, commonly known as a grass-carrying wasp. Females construct nests in pre-existing cavities such as hollow stems, abandoned insect burrows, or window tracks, using dry grass to partition cells and plug entrances. They provision nests with paralyzed tree crickets and katydids as food for their larvae. The species occurs in North America and is not aggressive toward humans.
Sphecinae
digger wasps, thread-waisted wasps, grass-carrying wasps
Sphecinae is a subfamily of digger wasps (family Sphecidae) characterized by thread-waisted bodies and solitary nesting behavior. Members construct nests in soil, plant stems, or pre-existing cavities, provisioning cells with paralyzed prey for their larvae. The subfamily includes notable genera such as Sphex, Isodontia, and Podalonia, with diverse nesting strategies ranging from burrowing to grass-carrying.