Knowledgebase

Ant or Wasp? #931224

Asked May 10, 2026, 2:46 PM EDT

I have found three large flying bugs in one of the rooms of our home in the last couple days on separate occasions. Have never seen it before, but managed a picture before relocating it outside. I do not know how they are getting inside. My question is regarding identification. Due to its large size, pinched (paper thin) waist and faint striping on its end, is this an ant, wasp or something else? Any help would be appreciated.

Hennepin County Minnesota

Expert Response

It looks to me like you've got Mud Dawber wasps.  Finding them in your home suggests to me there's a nest somewhere in a crawlspace.   Adults die,  but going overwinter in nests.

These are solitary wasps,  and stings are very rare - they do not aggressively protect nests as some wasps do. All the same, they can sting.  

Here's some information about them: 

Mud Dauber Wasp | Yard and Garden https://share.google/oSiNq5IEAhxKwJKTy

Kim Sullivan Replied May 10, 2026, 7:23 PM EDT

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