Leaf-beetle-predator
Guides
Symmorphus albomarginatus
White-bordered Potter Wasp
A small, slender mason wasp in the subfamily Eumeninae. Females construct multi-celled nests in pre-existing wood cavities, provisioning cells with paralyzed leaf beetle larvae (Chrysomelidae), weevil larvae (Curculionidae), or leaf-mining moth caterpillars. Two subspecies recognized: nominate S. a. albomarginatus and S. a. midas from southern Texas. The species ranges across much of North America from Alaska to California and eastward.
Symmorphus canadensis
Canadian potter wasp, Canadian mason wasp
Symmorphus canadensis is the smallest North American species in the genus Symmorphus, measuring approximately 6–10 mm. This solitary mason wasp specializes in hunting leaf beetle larvae, weevil larvae, and leaf-mining moth caterpillars to provision nests constructed in pre-existing cavities. Females partition nest tunnels into multiple cells using mud partitions, laying one egg per cell atop paralyzed prey. The species is transcontinental across North America, absent only from Florida, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona.
Symmorphus cristatus
Tufted Potter Wasp
Symmorphus cristatus is a solitary mason wasp in the subfamily Eumeninae, widely distributed across North America. It is a specialist predator of leaf beetle larvae (Chrysomelidae), which it paralyzes and provisions in mud-partitioned nest cells. The species exhibits trap-nesting behavior, utilizing pre-existing cavities in dead wood rather than constructing free-standing nests. It serves as a significant biological control agent for several leaf beetle species and is subject to brood parasitism by cuckoo wasps.
Symmorphus projectus
Symmorphus projectus is a small, slender mason wasp in the subfamily Eumeninae. It is strictly western in distribution, ranging from the Pacific Northwest to Montana, Wyoming, and southward. Females nest in pre-existing cavities such as beetle borings in dead wood, provisioning cells with paralyzed leaf beetle larvae, weevil larvae, or leaf-mining moth caterpillars for their offspring. The species is one of four Symmorphus species in North America and can be distinguished from eastern congeners by geographic range and subtle morphological features.