While humankind often presumes priority of place, planet Earth might more acurately be described as the domain of arthropods. Among insects, it's the butterflies and/or the dragonflies that draw the most attention while other orders are given short shrift. Certainly the hymenoptera -the bees, wasps, and ants are often over-looked. Each of these groups, however, has its devotees and one man is primarily responsible for calling our attention to the wasps - Howard Ensign Evans (1919-2002). In his book, Wasp Farm, Evans highlights the joys of wasp watching in his descriptions of the extraordinary and fascinating behavior of common wasp species. In the first chapter of Wasp Farm, Evans states, "Wasps share our planet but live in a different world. All about us they wind out their little lives, unaware that man is lord and master of the earth." And then he provides a prescription for our well-being. "We would do well, now and then, to stretch out on the good earth with a notebook, camera, or sketch pad and chronicle the lives of some of our less self-important neighbors." As is often the case Evans was part of a venerable line of researchers that included Jean Henri Fabre (1823-1915), Phil Rau (1885 - 1948), Nellie Lois Rau (1885 - 1972), Nikolaas Tinbergen (1907 - 1988) and Katsuji Tsuneki (1908 - 1994).These video segments are dedicated to and inspired by Howard Ensign Evans. I hope they motivate you to spend some time wasp watching.

Over the last several years I have been acquiring video footage of solitary wasps with the goal of producing a DVD for naturalists. I have received assistance and advice from a number of individuals including John Ascher, Matthias Buck, James Carpenter, Eric Eaton, Nick Fensler, Chuck Holliday, John Huehnergard, Mark O'Brien, Kevin O'Neill, Steve Orzack, James Pitts, Bill Stubblefield, and Carl Yoshimoto. Thanks to Greg Dodge for I. auripes footage.

Sphecidae

• Thread-waisted Wasp (Ammophila procera)
• Thread-waisted Wasp (Ammophila pictipennis)
• Steel-blue Cricket Hunter (Chlorion aerarium)
• Thread-waisted Wasp (Eremnophila aureonotata)
• Grass-carrying Wasp (Isodontia - 3 species)
• Thread-waisted Wasp (Prionyx parkeri)
• Great Golden Digger (Sphex ichneumoneus)
• Great Black Wasp (Sphex pensylvanicus)

Crabronidae

• Sand-loving Wasp (Tachytes sp.)
• Sand Wasp (Bembix americana)
• Sand Wasp (Bicyrtes quadrifasciatus)
• Digger Wasp (Gorytes sp.)
• Sand Wasp (Microbembex monodonta)
• Cicada-Killer (Sphecius speciosus)
• Queen Ant Kidnapping Wasp (Aphilanthops frigidus)
• Buprestid Hunter (Cerceris fumipennis)
• Weevil Hunter (Cerceris halone)
• Beewolf (Philanthus gibbosus)
• Beewolf (Philanthus lepidus)
• Beewolf (Philanthus sanbornii)
• Beewolf (Philanthus ventilabris)

Readings
Wasp Farm. Howard Ensign Evans. 1963. Natural History Press, Doubleday.
The Wasps. Howard Ensign Evans and Mary Jane West Eberhard. 1970. The University of Michigan Press.
Life On A Little-Known Planet. Howard Ensign Evans. 1968. Dutton.
The Natural History and Behavior of North American Beewolves. Howard E. Evans and Kevin M. O'Neill. 1988. Cornell University Press.
Solitary Wasps - Behavior and Natural History. Kevin M. O'Neill. 2001. Comstock.
The Sand Wasps - Behavior and Natural History. Howard E. Evans and Kevin M. O'Neill. 2007. Harvard University Press.