Solitary Wasps and Bees (Order Hymenoptera)

This group includes those bees and wasps that do not have a social structure and are only occasionally encountered by people. Among the more common ones are the velvet ants, sweat bees, spider wasps, cicada killers, mud daubers, and carpenter bees.

The velvet ants are wasps and not ants. In the southeastern U.S. they are called “cow killers.” The females are wingless and scurry along the ground alone in search of prey. They can inflict painful, repeated stings. They are brightly colored and have a velvety texture. A common species throughout the south is red and black (Figure 15). Female velvet ants like to roam in open places where the ground cover is sparse. Males can fly and are often a nuisance to golfers around greens. Remember that males can’t sting. Velvet ants are predacious on spiders and other insects and are very beneficial, discounting of course, their painful sting. Wearing shoes when outdoors and being careful where you sit can help prevent stings from velvet ants. Sitting on the ground is really a poor practice for a number of reasons (chiggers, ticks, velvet ants, fire ants, spiders, and scorpions ad infinitum).

Carpenter bees look like bumble bees except their abdomens are smooth and void of hair (Figure 16). The females can sting but rarely do. Carpenter bees nest in seasoned wood and can be damaging to log homes and other wood in use (Figure 17). The males have a white marking on the face and often buzz people into intimidation, but we now know those male insects can’t sting, so why get upset? Carpenter bees visit flowers often and blend with bumble bees quite effectively.