Who Goes There?
Posted by Judie Simon on August 27, 2006
Q: We have three gobs of mud on the tip of our brick home near the roof. These gobs of mud look like tubes and have a hole in them about 1/4 inch. They are about 4 inches long and are sticking to the brick. I don't know if this is a coinsidence but on the steps below these mud tubes looke like feces. It is black and looks like an oblong size of a pea. More like a navy bean but not curved. What do we have? Thanks Judie
Habitat: field/meadow
State: Michigan
Habitat: field/meadow
A: Your mud tubes are being made by mud daubers. These are a kind of wasp that makes a mud tunnel in which they place their eggs and food for their babies to eat during development. Although they are wasps and can sting, if you don't bother them, they won't bother you (be sure any children know NOT to approach the nests just to be on the safe side). Keep an eye on the mud nests and you'll probably get to see who is making them. The fecal-like dark objects seem a bit large to me for droppings but they may be the skins of the caterpillars that the wasps are feeding to their young. Examine these dark objects and see if you can determine what they are. Thanks for sharing.
John Wiessinger ( August 27, 2006)