Ichneumon Wasp

6192 I’m from Prince George, BC. I found this bug in my basement April 2018. We have had a bizarre winter (cold, warm, lots of snow, melting, freezing etc), but now it is quite mild and finally looking like spring.

The bug looks like an ant but has a really long “tail” and wings. It’s between 5-10 m long from antennae to end of the tail. Does anyone know what this would be? I’ve lived in Prince George my whole life and I have never seen a bug like this before. The bug in the picture was found dead (hard to say if my cat got to it). Any advice is greatly appreciated. I can tell you that the bug is dominantly black and the legs may be a brownish colour.

Number 6192 – This is an ichneumon wasp (Hymenopter: Ichneumonidae); they all are parasitic on other arthropods, primarily other insects, and are harmless to humans (and cats).