Ichneumon ID - possibly Heteropelma sp
Hi I saw and tried to photograph an ichneumon wasp yesterday at Nordskoven, near Jægerspris. It was tricky to photograph or watch through binoculars as it was constantly on the move but I was able to get a couple of images (not brilliant) that may assist in identification. I think it is a Heteropelma, based on what I can discover using a guidebook and the very useful (and downloadable) PDF document called "Beginner´s guide to identifying British ichneumonids" by the Natural History Museum. There are two listed as possibly found in Denmark, the amictum and megarthrum but none have been seen according to the fugleognatur database. If the one I saw is one of these two, I doubt whether the images are of sufficient to make a positive id possible. However, it would be nice to pin it down as a Heteropelma so I can register it or, of course, if I´m completely off-track, put it down as another species. Any help would be appreciated. Mike Kelly |