The Incredibly Tiny Hulk: Perilampid Wasps

 

Something surprises me every time I look for insects in gardens and when I saw a glittering turquoise wasp lurking on the leaves of a sunflower in my mom's garden, I assumed it was a little jewel wasp. Then I looked at the photograph and realized his critter looked like a jewel wasp on steroids. I identified it by seeing a similar creature on Bug Eric's website who helped me recognize it as a perilampid wasp which is a wasp that "parasitizes the parasites", making it a "hyperparasitoid wasp". There's a famous quote in the movie Jaws, when Brody says "We're gonna need a bigger boat." When I see these tiny fascinating creatures, I whisper to myself "I'm gonna need a bigger lens."