Have you ever seen a fuzzy looking ant? Maybe it looked like a little pipe cleaner with fuzzy red or yellow hair? If so, you probably saw a velvet ant. And here’s the thing - it’s not even an ant at all. They’re wingless wasps, and they often turn up along hiking trails, roadsides, and sometimes even in your backyard! And if you haven’t seen one, hit pause and check out the show notes on naturesarchive.com for a few photos.What’s more, these wasps have quite the reputation and an amazing natural history.With me today is Dr. Joseph Wilson, an evolutionary ecologist and associate professor of biology at Utah State University. Dr. Wilson is also the co-author of the new book, Velvet Ants of North America, as well as the wildly popular The Bees in Your Backyard. I reached out to Dr. Wilson because I’ve always been fascinated with velvet ants, but found precious little information about them. I purchased the book and reached out to Dr. Wilson, and he graciously agreed to share some of his knowledge. For example, did you know that some velvet ants have an auditory warning? And half of velvet ants are nocturnal? We discuss why we seem to usually see velvet ants deterministically wandering near trails, why they are often - and inaccurately - called cow killers, and more.But I couldn’t have a chat with Dr. Wilson and not talk bees, so we kick things off with some discussion of bees, buzz pollination and more before transitioning to velvet ants.Find Dr. Wilson on The Bees in Your Backyard, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.FULL SHOW NOTESMORE LINKSAlso check out our interview with Krystle Hickman (episode #66) - about finding and photographing native bees.The Bees in Your Backyard by Olivia Messinger Carril and Joseph WilsonCommon Bees of Western North AmericaCommon Bees of Eastern North AmericaVelvet Ants of North America by Williams, Pan, and WilsonNote: books are affiliate links to Bookshop.org. Support independent bookstores AND Jumpstart Nature by purchasing through these links or our bookshop store.Other Insect-oriented PodcastsJust BugsBug BanterBugs Need HeroesMusic: Spellbound by Brian Holtz MusicLicense (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-licenseArtist website: https://brianholtzmusic.comSupport Us On Patreon! .Get inspired with the Jumpstart Nature Podcast - entertaining and immersive, it's the nature podcast we all need.Check past Nature's Archive episodes for amazing guests such as Doug Tallamy, Elaine Ingham, and Gabe Brown. And topics ranging from bird migration to fungi to frogs and bats!