Pigeon Horntail

Tremex columba

This wasp does not sting. The "stinger" on the end of it is actually an ovipositer that the female uses to drill into a tree in order to lay eggs in the wood. It hurts the tree, but not enough to kill it. Usually the trees that the horntail chooses are already damaged. There are about 22 Tremex species in the world, but only one in North America and John found it and we photographed it! A good article on these creatures can be found at enature.com.

Pigeon Horntail Set

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