Steel-blue Cricket Hunter vs Wool Carder Bee
Side-by-side species comparison
| Attribute | Steel-blue Cricket Hunter | Wool Carder Bee |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Chlorion aerarium | Anthidium manicatum |
| Order | Hymenoptera | Hymenoptera |
| Family | Sphecidae | Megachilidae |
| Size | 18-28 mm | 10-17 mm |
| Habitat | Deserts & Drylands | Underground |
| Diet | Predators | Nectar Feeders |
| Regions | North America | Western Europe, Central Europe, Southern Europe |
| Conservation | Least Concern | Least Concern |
Steel-blue Cricket Hunter
A large metallic blue wasp that hunts field crickets and mole crickets. It drags paralyzed prey into burrows to provision its nest cells.
Did You Know?
It enters cricket burrows headfirst to sting and extract its prey from underground.
Wool Carder Bee
A robust yellow-and-black solitary bee whose females scrape plant hairs to line their nests. Males are territorial and aggressively patrol flower patches, even attacking bumblebees.
Did You Know?
Males have five sharp spines on their abdomen that they use to body-slam intruding bees.