Flying Red Insect

Denver, CO

I live in south west Denver, Colorado. For more then a few nights now been finding these flying red insects trying to fly in my window. They come out in the night time usually after midnight on warm nights. I was told they may be flying red ants. From the pictures i have seen it would be impossible. I have photo shopped a picture to best show what it looks like and a brief description.

The wings are more vieny then scaley like the ones i used.
Its around 2 or 2 1/2 centimeters long. Very flat and skinny (maybe the thickness of the tip of a flat head screw driver) The limbs and antenna are very long and frail like a piece of hair. It also has a stinger type thing coming out of its bottom looks more or less like one of the antenna, seems to be soft.

I thought it maybe a Ichneumonid wasp but the abdominal region don't look the same and neither do the wings.


Thumbnail by BornAProphet
Sinks Grove, WV

This very well could be an ichneumon wasp, but I cannot see the wing venation clearly enough to be certain. remember that Ichneumonidae is a very large family with thousands of species having very different appearances, see http://tinyurl.com/yckcxkk for a sampling. The other possibility is the family Braconidae - see http://tinyurl.com/2675wnd for an example.

Denver, CO

Let me start by saying thank you suunto. Spathius sp. from the second url seems to be the correct one. Can you tell me where I can find information about it. My wife is allergic to bees
so it would be nice to know how aggressive they are, if they even sting. Where they live to exterminate them and so forth. I will be grateful for any further information anyone can provide.

Sinks Grove, WV

These insects are entirely harmless; they all are parasitic on other arthropods (primarily insects); they lack venom, and their 'stinger' is just their ovipositor (egg-laying tool). There is no need for any control.

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