Bee Moth vs Dinosaur Ant

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Bee Moth Dinosaur Ant
Scientific Name Aphomia sociella Nothomyrmecia macrops
Order Lepidoptera Hymenoptera
Family Crambidae Formicidae
Size 30-42 mm wingspan 10-15 mm
Habitat Woodlands Woodlands
Diet Parasites Omnivores
Regions Europe, Asia, North America (introduced) Oceania
Conservation Least Concern Critically Endangered

Bee Moth

A robust pinkish-brown moth whose larvae are nest parasites of bumblebees and wasps. Females enter bee nests at night to lay their eggs.

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Did You Know?

A single larval web can contain hundreds of caterpillars that completely destroy a bumblebee nest.

Dinosaur Ant

Considered the most primitive living ant, often called a living fossil. Discovered in 1931 and then lost for 46 years until rediscovered in 1977 in South Australia.

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Did You Know?

This ant was lost to science for 46 years after its discovery — rediscovered by pure luck when an entomologist pulled over to sleep at the roadside where they happened to live.