Harmless - pretty much

A really late night tonight folks. So just a quickie.

When I saw this while we were out and about, I really thought it was going to kill me if I got too close.

But no!!! It's an Australian potter wasp, and pretty much harmless. They can sting, but generally won't unless they are squeezed, or generally mishandled.

She's pretty big - at least 2.5 cms long, and her main prey are various types of caterpillars, and they often use pest species. The caterpillar is generally gripped in the mandibles of the wasp, pinned down and stung, which paralyses it without killing it. The wasp flies and walks all the way back to the nest, dragging the caterpillar along in her mandibles. An egg is laid alongside the caterpillar in the nest and when the egg hatches, the larva eats the caterpillar. Which is fine so long as they are cabbage whites!

They build the most amazing nests of mud - hence the name potter wasp. I really didn't have time to try and find her nest, and as we were at an Open Garden in the Barossa Valley, I won't be able to go back.