Tarantula hawk
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| phylum | Arthropoda | A tarantula hawk is a spider wasp which hunts tarantulas. Tarantula hawks belong to any of the many species in the genera Pepsis and Hemipepsis in the family Pompilidae (spider wasps). The more familiar species are up to 5 cm (2.0 in) long, making them among the largest of wasps, and have blue-black bodies and bright, rust-colored wings (other species have black wings with blue highlights). The vivid coloration found on the bodies, and especially wings, of these wasps is an aposematism, advertising to potential predators the wasps' ability to deliver a powerful sting. Their long legs have hooked claws for grappling with their victims.
For more information, visit the Wild Life North America entry. Get back to Wasps |
| Class | Insecta | |
| order | Hymenoptera | |
| Suborder | Apocrita | |
| family | Pompilidae | |
| subfamily | Pepsinae | |
| genera | Pepsis Hemipepsis |
