Dacetine Trap-Jaw Ant vs Gold-tailed Ruby Wasp
Side-by-side species comparison
| Attribute | Dacetine Trap-Jaw Ant | Gold-tailed Ruby Wasp |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Strumigenys emmae | Chrysis fulgida |
| Order | Hymenoptera | Hymenoptera |
| Family | Formicidae | Chrysididae |
| Size | 1.5-2.5 mm | 7-12 mm |
| Habitat | Indoors | Underground |
| Diet | Detritivores | Parasites |
| Regions | Europe, North Africa | Central Europe, Southern Europe, Western Europe |
| Conservation | Least Concern | Least Concern |
Dacetine Trap-Jaw Ant
A minute trap-jaw ant with elongate mandibles fringed with specialized hairs used to detect and capture tiny soil-dwelling springtails. Workers are slow-moving, cryptic hunters that stalk prey in leaf litter. Their bodies are covered in bizarre spatulate hairs.
Did You Know?
Their mandible trigger hairs are so sensitive they can detect the vibrations of a springtail walking nearby and snap shut in microseconds.
Gold-tailed Ruby Wasp
A dazzling metallic wasp with a bright green head and thorax and a golden-red abdomen. It is a brood parasite of potter wasps and mason wasps.
Did You Know?
Its armoured exoskeleton is so tough that host wasps cannot sting through it.