DESCRIPTION: Wing length 15 - 19mm. A stunning creature that is easily identified in the food by its size, orange-yellow black banded abdomen, yellow-orange scutellum, black pronotum with chestnut markings, and the wings which are orange-yellow in the basal two-thirds. The face is completely yellow and has two large brown eyes. BEHAVIOUR: Regularly seen indoors and a species that is only seen in ones or tows rather than large colonies. The larvae are scavengers and predators in the nests of social wasps. DISTRIBUTION: Widespread throughout Southern Britain but gradually expanding northwards. HABITAT: Woodland edges, heaths, grassy rides, riversides, coastal areas, urban gardens and hedgerows. PERIOD: May to November with a peak during August. Numbers fluctuate each year.
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