Here's the birding link: I watched a young magpie try
unsuccessfully to catch a native wasp, even after once having it
in its bill.
But I "collected" one at a playground where I had seen another
magpie dig up what may have been a Cow Beetle (one of the
scarabs). Phoned the Melbourne Museum and they said "Not
another!". They are getting about 10 queries or specimens a day
relating to Scolia sp. wasps. The nearest I know is the "blue
flower wasp" S. soror: 28mm black body and blue wings.
At the same mulched playground there were deep holes which I
guess were made by foxes. The wasps were also burying to more
than 5cm, presumably in their hunt for scarab beetle larvae.
The females kill (by stinging) many more than they lay eggs
on.
Advice from the amazingly helpful Australian Museum suggests,
extrapolating from USA data, that Scoliid wasps may live for 1-2
months and very rarely sting Homo sapiens. A delight: while the
mums hid away I did a Pied Piper act and had lots of small
children netting them, saying "no - another male" and letting
them go.
Perhaps the wasps are signs of global warming ?
Michael Norris
Bayside Friends of Native Wildlife
Birding-Aus is on the Web at
www.shc.melb.catholic.edu.au/home/birding/index.html
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