My friend Soo and I were visiting the Skagit Wildlife Refuge looking for shorebirds.  Not much was happening when we arrived, so we starting trying to photograph the numerous grasshoppers basking in the warm sun along the gravel path. I also noticed another insect on the path, but he was moving so fast along the ground I could not see what he was doing.  Soo, with her far superior vision, could tell that this other insect was dragging a grasshopper.  I then got out the camera and started shooting.  I was amazed to find out that what we had found was a parasitic digger wasp carrying its paralyzed grasshopper.  I do not know what species of digger wasp this is.   Digger wasp carrying a paralyzed grasshopper The wasp deposited the grasshopper under a shrub.  I could tell that the grasshopper was still alive because the abdomen was still moving slightly. The wasp then proceeded to dig several dens.  I don't know at this point the reason for several dens.  He went back and forth between the two.  I don't know if he was planning to bury two grasshoppers, or he was just trying to figure out which den was working out the best.  

Digger wasp digging its den At this point I started videoing the process.  This was all set up very last minute, and my video skills are not the best, so the videos are a bit jumpy. But, I think they captured what the wasp was doing.

Digger Wasp digging its den The den seemed to collapse, but he kept at it and made it much deeper.

Digger Wasp digging its den He then started working on a second den.  This second one ended up being the final resting place for the paralyzed grasshopper.

Digger Wasp digging its second den Digger Wasp digging a second den It now was time to size up the grasshopper to see if the den was large enough to store him.  The wasp mounted the grasshopper and moved it a few inches.

Digger Wasp digging its den He just moved it a bit, then dismounted and ran off to dig the den deeper, leaving the paralyzed grasshopper to just sit there in the sun.

Paralyzed grasshopper Once the den was deemed to be adequate, the wasp came back and mounted the grasshopper for one last journey to the den.  Sorry about the poor video quality.  The wasp was moving really fast, and was very hard to track.

Digger wasp carrying the paralyzed grasshopper to its den Once the grasshopper is safely in the den, the digger wasp lays an egg on the grasshopper.  The growing larva will then feed on the grasshopper.  Pretty gruesome, but absolutely fascinating.  I never thought I would have a chance to witness this in action.