a species of velvet ant known as Traumatomutilla bifurca. With its furry exterior and distinct black and white markings, the insect “looks like magic,” Vinicius Lopez, an entomologist at the ...

Wasps aren’t normally admired for their looks, but one species—Traumatomutilla bifurca, a Brazilian velvet ant—is unlike any other. It has ultra-dark markings that reflect less than 1 percent of ...

Despite their name and looks, velvet ants are actually wasps. Many of these delightfully fuzzy insects exhibit bright, contrasting shades of black with red, orange or white. Their bold bodies serve as ...

Too short. I ignored the velvet ant’s buzzing warning and underestimated the length of the half-inch-long black stinger that went right into my thumb. Painful, yes, but with one consolation.