Trevor spotted around 10-15 snakeflies on a ponderosa pine at Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge—lucky! These beautiful and seemingly elusive insects get their name from the long “neck” of the adults (part of their thorax). You can tell it is a female from the long ovipositor (tubular organ used to deposit eggs) extending beyond the abdomen. They are relatives of lacewings and are very impressive predators in both the larval and adult stages.
Size: Approximately 3 — 4 cm long
Photo by: Trevor O’Brien on 4/26/22 near Stevensville, MT