Ammophila procera
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Ammophila procera, the common thread-waisted wasp, is a species of thread-waisted wasp in the family Sphecidae. It is a common species, found in southern Canada, the United States, and Mexico, and south to Central America.
Ammophila procera generally live in open areas with soft or sandy soil where they can burrow nests. The adult female digs a burrow. After completing the burrow, it seals the entrance and makes flight around the area, memorizing landmarks such as rocks, plants, etc. It uses these landmarks to locate the burrow when it returns, sometimes days later.
It then captures and paralyzes prey, usually a moth caterpillar or sawfly larva, and drags it to the burrows where it lays a single egg on the prey. The female then seals the nest with dirt and debris. Despite sealing the nest, some females will "hijack" another's nest, replacing the egg in the nest with their own.
The egg typically hatches after two days, and the larva feeds on the caterpillar for about five days before it pupates within the nest. It emerges from the nest with fully formed wings. The adults feed primarily on flower nectar. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Big Bend National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Orlando | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Houston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Boston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Dallas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Common Thread-Waisted Wasp sighting in Orlando on a given day, based on 13 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 131st most-seen of the 294 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June and August–September
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Common Thread-Waisted Wasp in Orlando on a given day, against under 5% in July and October–May, the lowest months. Those are among Orlando's wettest months, with about 190 mm of rain a month against 50 mm in November.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Common Thread-Waisted Wasp sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 6 cities where we can rate Common Thread-Waisted Wasp sightings, Orlando has the highest daily chance: under 5%. Next come Houston (United States, under 5%) and Boston (United States, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Common Thread-Waisted Wasp is recorded against all the insects logged in Orlando (13 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
