Organ Pipe Mud Dauber vs Army Ant Rove Beetle

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Organ Pipe Mud Dauber Army Ant Rove Beetle
Scientific Name Trypoxylon politum Ecitomorpha arachnoides
Order Hymenoptera Coleoptera
Family Crabronidae Staphylinidae
Size 15-20 mm 4-6 mm
Habitat Underground Underground
Diet Predators Omnivores
Regions North America Central America, South America
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Organ Pipe Mud Dauber

A slender black wasp that builds distinctive parallel tubes of mud resembling organ pipes under eaves and overhangs. Males guard the nest while females hunt.

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Did You Know?

Males are unusually dedicated fathers for wasps, standing guard at the nest entrance against parasites while the female hunts.

Army Ant Rove Beetle

An extraordinary myrmecophilous rove beetle whose body remarkably mimics the shape of its host army ants. It lives exclusively among New World army ant colonies, marching with them on raids.

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Did You Know?

Its body shape so closely mimics that of its host ant that early entomologists initially classified it as an ant rather than a beetle.