Red Velvet Ant vs Giant Orange Ichneumon

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Red Velvet Ant Giant Orange Ichneumon
Scientific Name Dasymutilla magnifica Netelia producta
Order Hymenoptera Hymenoptera
Family Mutillidae Ichneumonidae
Size 12-20 mm 15-22 mm
Habitat Deserts & Drylands Woodlands
Diet Nectar Feeders Parasitoids
Regions Southwestern United States, Mexico North America
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Red Velvet Ant

A large, brilliantly red-haired velvet ant found in the arid regions of the American Southwest. Females are wingless and run rapidly across open ground.

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Did You Know?

Its exoskeleton is so tough that entomological pins often bend when researchers attempt to mount specimens.

Giant Orange Ichneumon

A large, uniformly orange ichneumon wasp commonly attracted to lights. It parasitizes caterpillars of owlet moths and geometrid moths.

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Did You Know?

It is one of the most frequently encountered ichneumon wasps at porch lights across North America during summer.