''Tremex columba'', also known as the pigeon tremex or pigeon horntail, is a species of
horntail that is native to eastern and western
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
.
Appearance and behavior
The females are larger than the males, with females growing to 25-30mm in length, and males about 20-25mm. The species can vary in coloration from light brown to dark reddish brown, and sports yellow and black stripes along the abdomen.
Both males and females have long projections protruding from their rear, with the females possessing an additional projection in the form of an
ovipositor
The ovipositor is a tube-like organ used by some animals, especially insects, for the laying of eggs. In insects, an ovipositor consists of a maximum of three pairs of appendages. The details and morphology of the ovipositor vary, but typical ...
.
The females of the species use their ovipositor to deposit their eggs into dead and dying
deciduous trees
such as
beech
Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...
,
elm,
maple, and
oak, which the larvae burrow inside of and feed upon.
They usually deposit between two and seven eggs into the tree. The female will die after this process, and carcasses can sometimes be seen stuck to the bark of host trees.
Interaction with other species
''
Megarhyssa macrurus
''Megarhyssa macrurus'', also known as the long-tailed giant ichneumonid wasp or long-tailed giant ichneumon wasp, is a species of large ichneumon wasp. It is a parasitoid, notable for its extremely long ovipositor which it uses to deposit an e ...
'', ''
M. greenei'', and ''
M. atrata'' are the natural predators of this species. The female ''Megarhyssa'' seeks out the larvae within the tunnels bored by this species. It then lays an egg next to the larva and then injects a venom to paralyze it.
[
] Another parasitoid of ''Tremex columba'' is ''
Ibalia anceps''.
Because the species prefers dead or decaying trees, they usually pose little threat to vegetation as a pest,
though they do sometimes select healthy trees, and via the ovipositor the species can infect the host tree with ''
Cerrena unicolor'', a fungus that can rot the trees.
The species is not considered harmful to humans, and does not sting or bite.
References
Siricidae
Insects described in 1763
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus
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