Can anyone identify a bee-type thing?

[boxtops]

Just seen in our garden:

looked like a bee but much larger
yellow stripe on its head
Striped on the body like a wasp
Not a pointy tail like a wasp, more rounded like a bee
Not furry like a bee
hairy black legs
about an inch long

any ideas?

[tonyav]

Maybe an Hornet ?

[Frank97]

A Hornet perhaps?
http://cinnamonsmakeo...laire-vs-hornets.html

[boxtops]

No, not a hornet, I've seen them before, and this thing had black furry legs.

[Prudie]

Look at mammoth wasp - this is what my post a week or so ago turned out to be.

[boxtops]

Blimey, that looks like it, prudie http://www.google.co....=0CF0Q9QEwAw&dur=3802

It says it's not dangerous to people, but I wouldn't give it the benefit of the doubt!

[China Doll]

Do we get those in England then? I've been looking at a few sites and seen about them being in spain.... I hope you saw one that got lost boxy, I'd rather not bump in to one over here! :c)

[boxtops]

If was definitely something like that - I'll keep an eye out for any more!

[JonnyBoy12]

A massive wasp maybe?


Where do you take a six wasp?

To waspital!

[boxtops]

We've just seen another two of these wasps, definitely not the mammoth wasp - one had a bright yellow tail end to its, the other was a bit fatter and more stripy like a wasp-wasp..... any more thoughts, please?

[excelsior-1]

boxtops.

i studied hymenoptery at school -- but that was 40 years ago.

can you get a photo if it on here? it may stimulate my memory

[sir.prize]

ANything like this?

http://rxwildlife.org.uk/2010/06/page/3/

[boxtops]

sorry sir.p, nothing like that....

excel, it's shaped like a wasp but bigger (about 1" long), with a body shaped like a wasp, but it has a big yellow stripe down its "nose" and the back pointy end is slightly rounded and is bright yellow. The other one was similar in the "face" but shorter and a rounder body, and stripes (black/yellow) round its body. They both looked slightly hairier that your average wasp.

[boxtops]

I'm wondering now if it was a hornet http://www.google.co....t:429,r:14,s:47,i:340 but the bottom end of the body on the big one was plain yellow?

[excelsior-1]

try hoverfly.

there are several members of the hoverfly family -- some are hairier than others -- they are adapted to look like bees and wasps in order to avoid predators.