Sand Wasp

I’d seen these guys before and pegged them as hoverflies, but they are actual wasps! Sand Wasps, to be precise; they are not social, and not aggressive unless stepped on or something. There were approximately twenty zillion of them flying around the sandy trails because that’s where they dig their egg-laying burrows but I guess we didn’t step on any of them?

In addition to taking out various pests, it seems they do a bit of pollinating on the side