I was photographing another insect when this large bee landed next to me for just a moment, then flew away. I was lucky to get a picture. It was large, l 1/8" - 1 1/2" and a very bright iridescent blue. Can anyone ID this for me? Thanks for your help.
I'm not sure about New Jersey - here in Colorado we have various shiny black hunting wasps. The size varies from about 1/2 inch up to 2 inches - and the size of their prey varies accordingly. They paralize their prey, then pack it off to their burrow for their larva to eat. The largest ones can supposedly haul off a tarantula. The largest thing I've seen them carry was a cricket, but it was a big cricket. Order Hymenoptera, family sphecidae; you might try a Google image search on "sphecius".
Those yellow antennae and the extremely curved body shape lead me to thinking this is an ichneumon wasp. Not sure which - most likely Thyreodon atricolor but possibly Gnamptopelta obsidianator.
Given a choice of these two, I believe that it is more likely Gnamptopelta obsidianator - look at the legs.
I found photos of T atricolor with the dark legs, and others with the yellow legs - some have probably been misidentified. And that is why I hedged.
But I will gladly let you make that decision... Gnamptopelta obsidianator it is, unless you have a third option?
But definitely an ichneumon.
