Potter Spider Wasp
Auplopus carbonarius
Description
Body length 7 to 10mm. The female is all black, but the male has yellow stripes on its face and sometimes its fore-legs are all yellow.
Habitat
A wide variety of habitats are used but there must be a supply of soft-mud nearby for nest building. The females capture spiders to provision their cells.
Status and distribution
This species was confined to southern England, but is now spreading north and west and has been recorded in Yorkshire. Uncommon in Nottinghamshire and recorded once at Netherfield Lagoons.
Best time to see
May to September.