An Orange and Black Braconid Wasp (Two Macro Photos)

This wasp belong to the Braconidae family. It's quite small at just 7.8mm (excluding the antennae and ovipositor). I can't say precisely what species it is. There are something like 17,000 world wide. Like the Ichneumon wasp I posted the other day, these are also parasitoids. Their larvae feed either internally or externally on various other insects including caterpillars, beetle larvae and bugs.

Braconids and Ichneumonids can look superficially similar. One way to separate them is by their wing venation, so, getting a clear shot of the wing is always helpful.

The photos below were taken with a Canon 7D and Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro lens.
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Spider Orchid	The Common Brown butterfly
A Small But Beautiful Icheumon Wasp	Rove Beetles