Giant Wasp Like Insect

Found this little fellow in the house!  I finally got brave enough to capture him in a wide mouth pint jar before it ate one of my kids.

 

I got home the other day as my wife is stepping out the door to take off for the dentist.  She says, "Look at the giant wasp in the laundry room".  My first thought was that she saw one of the giant horsefly looking bugs that I have been seeing lately.  I stepped in the house and heard a helicopter like noise and smashing against the window. 

 

This was a giant wasp looking critter.  It was close to 2 inches long and had two sets of wings that looked similar to butterfly wings with the coloration and size.  To tell you the truth it kind of freaked me out. 

 

It appeared to be sticking close to the window, so I went to the bedroom and closed the door to see if I could find out what it was on the internet.  I couldn't find this specific wasp but did read one article where an Asian wasp of this size delivered a sting that felt like a hot nail being driven through your leg.  SON OF $%^%*!  I really didn't like the idea of this thing being in my house.  Especially where it was trapped in the laundry room that we were planning on cleaning later.

 

I grabbed a jar and got close to it once.  It flew straight at me.  I tripped over a chair and almost stepped on a kitten on my scurry to the bedroom.  I tried to devise a safe way to capture this aggressive beast that shoots fire nails out of it's abdomen. 

 

Finally, I mustered up the nerve to try again. I went to the laundry room and it was gone.  How?  All of the doors were shut.  It didn't want to leave the window.  I looked all around.  Great.  There's no way I'm digging through boxes to clean with that thing in there.

 

I had a couple other things to take care of so I ran out for a bit.  When I got back to settle down on the couch in the living room, I heard the helicopter sound again.  He somehow got into the living room.  This should not have been a surprise.  It had somehow gotten into the tightly secured house.

 

The window seal met up with the back of the couch and gave me an ambush point where it could not see me.  I grabbed the jar and turned it over to trap the wasp.  As I lowered the jar in a swift motion, it caught between the couch and the window.  There was not enough room.  This thing came out from under the jar so fast.  I jumped back and juked and dodged the fire nails coming at my face.  I was part cat and part ninja.  Catja!

 

There wasn't much time left before I had to go pick up the kids from school so I had to make another attempt at capturing the beast with wings.  I pulled the couch slightly away from the window hoping not to aggravate it any more.  It was now sitting on the ledge.  It worked.  I had a clear shot now.  I lowered the jar over the top of it.  There was about a 1 inch overhang that it could have slid out the bottom, but I swiped the jar lid under it to trap it in the jar. 

 

The thing went crazy once it was trapped.  It started stinging the edges of the glass wherever I would move my hand.  It was furious.  It didn't look quite so ginormous in the jar, but it still looked huge.  I poked holes in the lid to give it some air. 

 

My kids were really intrigued by it, and my youngest couldn't wait to take it to show and tell the next day. 

 

I have never seen a wasp like creature this big and hope to never encounter one again.  I'm still not sure what it is and if it is supposed to be in South Central Kansas.