Biology/Behavior. Female velvet ants are solitary, diurnal, parasitic wasps. An efficient stinging apparatus and an extremely thick exoskeleton allow the female mutillid to conspicuously, yet safely, run about in the open searching for a suitable place to lay her eggs. Most cases of human envenomization occur when the female wasp is accidentally touched while roaming about on the ground or is trapped against the body in clothing or bedding.
Avoidance/Control. The solitary and roaming nature of velvet ants makes it very difficult to predict or designate ways to avoid contacting them. In areas like the beaches of Lake Erie where mutillids are known to frequent, however, potential victims should be made aware of the velvet ant hazard and how to avoid accidental envenomization. Since mutillids are not gregarious and do not congregate in accessible places, chemical control is not feasible.
Envenomization Reaction/Treatment. (See [appendix].)
5. WASPS
(Order: Hymenoptera; Family: Vespidae)
Bald-Faced Hornet
Yellow Jacket
Identification. This information applies to all dangerous wasps found in the United States except the mutillids (previously discussed). Wasps are elongate insects with three distinct body parts and four wings. As with all winged forms of Hymenoptera, the front pair of wings is larger than the hind pair. Only the female wasps are equipped with a stinger at the posterior end of the abdomen. To distinguish wasps from similar-appearing bees, the specimen’s thoracic hairs should be examined microscopically to determine if they are smooth (a wasp) or feathered (a bee). In the United States, members of the paper-wasp family (Vespidae) are generally considered to be the most dangerous because of their social nesting habits, aggressive behavior, and abundance. Two representative members of the Vespidae family found in North America are the bald-faced hornet, Vespula maculata, and a common yellow jacket, V. pennsylvanica. Although it takes an expert to identify most wasps according to species, the paperlike nests of the vespids make their identification easy. Another important group of dangerous wasps easily distinguished by their nests are the mud daubers. These wasps usually build their mud nests in the corners of man-made structures. Besides their distinctive nests, mud daubers are identified by their dark shiny color and long narrow waist.
Distribution. Dangerous species of wasps can be found throughout the United States.