Spotted Xiphydriid Wood Wasp vs Long-winged Fungus Gnat

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Spotted Xiphydriid Wood Wasp Long-winged Fungus Gnat
Scientific Name Xiphydria camelus Macrocera stigma
Order Hymenoptera Diptera
Family Xiphydriidae Mycetophilidae
Size 12-21 mm 5-8 mm
Habitat Woodlands Woodlands
Diet Wood Feeders Predators
Regions Europe, Western Asia Europe
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Spotted Xiphydriid Wood Wasp

A slender wood wasp with a distinctively elongated neck-like pronotum and white spots on a dark body. Females bore into hardwood trees to lay eggs.

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Did You Know?

Like horntails, Xiphydria wood wasps carry symbiotic fungi in special pouches called mycangia, which they inject into wood during egg-laying.

Long-winged Fungus Gnat

A delicate fungus gnat with unusually long antennae and slender patterned wings. It is often found in shaded damp woodland where it hunts small insects.

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Did You Know?

Some Macrocera species have bioluminescent larvae, though less spectacularly than the cave glowworms.