Wasp Beetle vs Horned Passalus

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Wasp Beetle Horned Passalus
Scientific Name Clytus arietis Odontotaenius disjunctus
Order Coleoptera Coleoptera
Family Cerambycidae Passalidae
Size 7-14 mm 28-37 mm
Habitat Underground Woodlands
Diet Wood Feeders Wood Feeders
Regions Europe Eastern North America
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Wasp Beetle

A longhorn beetle with yellow and black banding that mimics a common wasp. It even moves in a jerky, wasp-like manner.

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Did You Know?

It is completely harmless but its convincing wasp mimicry deters most predators.

Horned Passalus

A large, shiny black beetle with a small horn on its head, found in rotting logs. It lives in family groups where adults and larvae communicate by stridulation.

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Did You Know?

Adults chew wood into pulp and feed it to their larvae, one of the few beetles to show true parental care.