Velvet Ant

All velvet ants (cow killer ants) are members of the Mutillidae family and have a thick mound of colorful hair that acts as a warning sign to potential predators. The cow killer ant, Dasymutilla occidentalis, is the most prevalent velvet ant in Nebraska, though they can be found all across the world. They frequently wander around yards in open spaces like meadows and urban settings during the summer. This bug is a wasp rather than an ant. The females resemble ants because they lack wings. It does not possess a node (or two) on the waist, which is characteristic of all ants.

The female cow killer ant looks like a worker ant and is a sizable, hairy, wingless wasp. They have a black body that can reach lengths of 3/4" and are coated in coarse, vivid reddish-orange hair on the head, thorax, and abdomen. The males are larger, with darker brown wings, and they have various body color patterns. When startled, both male and female velvet ants make a squeaking or chirping noise. Because of the significant morphological differences between male and female specimens, it is frequently challenging to distinguish between species.