European Orussid Wood Wasp vs Question Mark Butterfly

Side-by-side species comparison

European Orussid Wood Wasp

A small, dark parasitoid wood wasp with a distinctly flattened head and stout build. It lays eggs into wood to parasitize wood-boring beetle larvae.

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Orussids use vibrations transmitted through wood to locate hidden host larvae deep inside tree trunks, similar to echolocation.

Orange butterfly with dark spots and irregular wing margins. A silvery question-mark shape on the underside of the hindwing gives it its name.

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It rarely visits flowers, preferring to feed on fermenting fruit, sap, and animal dung.