Insect and Spider Identification: CLOSED: Omalus auratus or Chrysis ignita?, 1 by wallaby1

wallaby1 wrote:
Omalus auratus Family Chrysididae Ruby-tailed Wasp.

I think this is the correct one, but I found several that look similar.

http://www.gwydir.demon.co.uk/insects/wasps.htm

Omalus aeneus

http://www.bwars.com/Omalus_aeneus.htm

Chrysis ignita is close too.

http://www.gardensafari.net/english/picpages/chrysis_ignita....

The pic in the gallery looks to have a different colour under the abdomen, but really the two species look alike!

http://www.gardensafari.net/english/remaining_wasps.htm

There are susbspecies of Omalus auratus

http://www.em.ipw.agrl.ethz.ch/types.php?key=Chrysididae

Mine's probably a male, females are mostly concave under the abdomen

http://www.earthlife.net/insects/hymenop.html#The Ruby-taile...

I found a site with pics!

http://www.chrysis.net/chrysis/gallery/photo.php?beg=3

This one shows that different colour underneath the abdomen of Chrysis ignita mine doesn't have that.

http://www.chrysis.net/chrysis/gallery/photo.php?beg=26

The abdomen shape of Philoctetes sculpticollis is like mine!

http://www.chrysis.net/chrysis/gallery/photo.php?beg=50

http://www.chrysis.net/chrysis/gallery/photo.php?beg=49

Philoctetes sculpticollis looks closer than this Chrysis ignita

http://www.chrysis.net/chrysis/gallery/photo.php?beg=72

There's a few pages of photos, looking through them Philoctetes sculpticollis fits BUT a search doesn't recognise the name!

http://www.chrysis.net/chrysis/gallery/photos.php?init=0

http://www.chrysis.net/index_en.php

I found some on bioimages, there is a pic of Omalus auratus which has the abdomen shape mine has, and it is said to be common (first I've seen), back to square one! Their dead specimens lack colour.

http://www.bioimages.org.uk/html/P4/P44034.php

http://www.bioimages.org.uk/html/P4/P44036.php

I read on one of the links there are 20 species in Britain, bioimages lists 13.