wasp – Kerry Wixted

A wooly white gall with pink spots on an oak.

By - kwixted0
Posted on April 26, 2026April 26, 2026
Posted in plants, wasps

Oh, the Gall! Gall-making Wasps

Have you seen a weird lump, bump, and/or projection growing off a leaf or stem of a plant? If so, you might have encountered a gall which is an abnormal growth of plant tissue caused by an invertebrate, fungi, and/or bacteria. Gall-making invertebrates secrete chemicals (like proteins) as they feed, causing plant tissue to form

Jewels of the Wasp World

One group of wasps that captivated me early on are the Chrysididae, or cuckoo wasps. They are jewels of the wasp world, adorned with metallic colors that seem to iridize with light along the pitted design of their exoskeleton. Their colors are complex and are created by light refracting through open spaces between six layers

A Better Guide to Yellow, Stripey Things

Did you know? Maryland has over 1,200 documented wasp species, many of which are super tiny and exist around you without you realizing they are there. I have spent the last 20 years working with wildlife and unlearning a lot of harmful stereotypes I grew up with (snakes are dangerous/spider bites cause major medical issues/