Sweet nectar and a bit of pollen hit the right spot in my tummy.
A Black Potter Wasp (Delta emarginatum) landed on our Christ-Thorn plant. Amazing coincidence in the afternoon on Christmas day.
I have in here the wasp and something new that I will show you at the end of the post. Not only have we an abundance of wildlife here, but the place is also saturated with insects. We found that if we investigate all the insects that we see that some of them live incredible lives. Take, for instance, the dragonfly, did you know that they spend most of their lives underwater as nymphs. Some species of dragonflies spend seven years underwater.
Now, the Potter Wasp is also an interesting insect. Females build a series of one-celled mud nests attached to plants, rock faces, and buildings. They collect water from pools, and then they mix the water with sand to dab it over the completed nest. All species in this sub-family are solitary, with a range of nest types in different areas. Females suspend an egg from the roof of each nest cell and then stack the bottom of the nest with paralysed caterpillars as food for their youngsters when they emerge from the eggs.
A series of photos below of this potter wasp.
Now here is something new, and we have never seen it before.
My wife called to show me this insect that was sitting at the side of a flowerpot, and I was flabbergasted as I didn't know what it was.
I could only see its one eye, and its stout little body.
So, we did some investigations, and the closest that we could find in our insect book is that it is a Toad Grasshopper, possibly the female. But I am not fully convinced of this either. There is always the possibility that it might be something else.
Maybe some insect fundi on Hive will know what it is. At first sight we thought it was a Cicada, but no its shape and the lack of wings showed that it wasn't. Then there is also a possibility that it could be some type of dragonfly larvae, but there is no water around in our back garden. The reason that we think that it might be a toad grasshopper, is that it has various colors and textures that match its surroundings. So, maybe it could be a match, and then again, maybe not. I didn't want to take it off from the flowerpot, and we shall wait to see what happens to it, if it is still here tomorrow. Right now, it is still here and like I said patience might show us what it is, if it is in a development stage. I will keep you updated.
All insect information was taken from our "Field Guide to Insects of South Africa" book. ISBN: 978-1-77584-584-3.
I hope you enjoyed the photos and the story.
Photos by Zac Smith. All-Rights-Reserved.
Camera: Canon PowershotSX70HS Bridge camera.
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