Insects by Picture
Bees, Ants, and Wasps by Picture
Hymenoptera Taxonomy
Evania appendigaster - Wikipedia
Ensign Wasp - University of Florida
Ensign Wasp - Texas A&M: Galveston County Beneficials in the Garden
I have seen ensign wasps many times, usually inside the house on a window pane. I could never identify it until I happened into a photo of one on Google image search. Evania appendigaster seems to be the most common one in the US. All species of the Evanidae family are parasites of household cockroach ootheca (egg capsules that contain cockroach eggs). One Evania larva eats all of the eggs in an ootheca before it leaves the ootheca as an adult.
It's been hard to get a good photo of an ensign wasp since I only ever see them as silhouettes on windows. Their most characteristic trait is their very small abdomens, which constantly bob up and down. The name "ensign wasp" comes from this bobbing, which is a bit like a naval ensign waving signal flags.
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