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Project Noah Nature School
Timulla sp.
About 8 millimeters in body length, colored as shown. Note "boxy" look to thorax, with squared-off corners, not as rounded as in other mutillid genera.
I captured the wasp as it was gleaning sweet exudates from the bud of a common sunflower, Helianthus anuus. Surrounding habitat was deep, sandy soil adjacent to an arroyo (dry riverbed). Riparian corridor had willow, cottonwood, while surrounding degraded shortgrass prairie was dominated by yucca with scattered elm trees.
I photographed the specimen at home, in a container, after briefly chilling it, then returned it to the wild later.
Spotted on Jul 14, 2013
Submitted on Jan 10, 2014
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