| Anoplius nigerrimus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Anoplius nigerrimus from Commanster, Belgian High Ardennes | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Pompilidae |
| Genus: | Anoplius |
| Species: | A. nigerrimus |
| Binomial name | |
| Anoplius nigerrimus (Scopoli, 1763) | |
| Synonyms [1] | |
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Anoplius nigerrimus is a species of spider wasp, or pompilid, and is the type species of the genus Anoplius . [1]
They are mostly black and the females are 6–8 mm long while males measure 5–8 mm. This species may be distinguished from the related A. caviventris and A. concinnus by the triangular rather than quadrilateral third submarginal cell of the forewing and the shorter setae, or hairs, on the thorax and abdomen. [2]
A. nigerrimus is a Holarctic species found from Northern and Central Europe eastwards across Asia to the Pacific Coast and in North America from the Yukon [3] to Newfoundland. [4] It is widespread in Great Britain and Ireland. [5]
Unlike other species of the genus Anoplius,A. nigerrimus does not show a preference for damp habitats and occurs in drier habitats such as grassland and scrub, the males are frequently encountered running over short vegetation. [5]
The flight period in Great Britain is May to September, [5] although in northern California adults have been collected in May, June and July. [6] Prey collected by A. nigerrimus include spiders from the families Lycosidae, Gnaphosidae and Pisauridae. A nigerrimus builds nests under stones, in cavities in stone walls, in hollow plant stems, in deserted burrows of ants, bees or wasps, and in empty snail shells. It can also dig a burrow and build cells in friable soil. [5] [6] One nest of four cells was found under a stone on moorland at an altitude of 400 m in Glen Tilt, near Blair Atholl, Perthshire. Flowers visited include umbellifers such as wild carrot and Heracleum sphondylium . [5] [7] The eulophid wasp, Tetrastichus pompilicola has been reared from larvae of A. nigerrimus in Newfoundland. [2]
Wasps in the family Pompilidae are commonly called spider wasps, spider-hunting wasps, or pompilid wasps. The family is cosmopolitan, with some 5,000 species in six subfamilies. Nearly all species are solitary, and most capture and paralyze prey, though members of the subfamily Ceropalinae are kleptoparasites of other pompilids, or ectoparasitoids of living spiders.
A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder. The wasps do not constitute a clade, a complete natural group with a single ancestor, as bees and ants are deeply nested within the wasps, having evolved from wasp ancestors. Wasps that are members of the clade Aculeata can sting their prey.
Episyron is a genus of wasps in the family Pompilidae which prey on spiders. Nine species are found in Europe.
Anoplius is a genus of spider wasps in the family Pompilidae, called the blue-black spider wasps. It is one of two genera within the tribe Anopliini of subfamily Pompilinae.
Dipogon bifasciatus is a spider wasp from the family Pompilidae.
Auplopus carbonarius is a spider wasp of the family Pompilidae. Uniquely among the British group it constructs a nest of barrel-shaped cells in which spiders are stored and the larvae develop.
Cryptocheilus notatus is the largest species of spider wasps (Pompilidae) to be found in Great Britain reaching up to 18 mm in length.
Epipompilus is a genus of spider wasps in the subfamily Pepsinae, part of the widespread family Pompilidae. Representatives of Epipompilus can be found in Australasia and North and South America. This distribution may indicate that Epipompilus evolved in Gondwana and is similar to other Gondwanan taxa such as the southern beech Nothofagus and Auracaria.
Priocnemis monachus is a species of spider wasp endemic to New Zealand, where it is known as the black hunting wasp or ngaro wīwī. It hunts large tunnelweb or trapdoor spiders, paralysing them with its sting and storing them in burrows for its larvae to eat alive. It is the largest member of the family Pompilidae in New Zealand.
Sphictostethus nitidus, the golden hunter wasp or red spider wasp, is a species of pepsid spider wasp endemic to New Zealand.
Evagetes is a genus of spider wasps from the family Pompilidae. There are 72 described species, of which 58 are found in the Palaearctic region, 11 in the Nearctic region, with a few penetrating to the Afrotropical, Oriental and Neotropic regions. Evagetes wasps are kleptoparasitic on other pompilid wasps, especially the genera Arachnospila, Anoplius, Episyron and Pompilus, digging into their sealed burrows, eating the host egg and replacing it with an egg of its own. Evagetes wasps are characterised by their very short antennae. Most are species are black with the base of the antennae rufous, several Evagetes species are very metallic bluish insects.
Evagetes crassicornis is a kleptoparasitic spider wasp with a holarctic distribution.
Agenioideus cinctellus is a spider wasp of the subfamily Pompilinae with a Palearctic distribution.
Anoplius viaticus, commonly known as the black-banded spider wasp, is a species of spider wasp. These wasps are known as spider wasps because the females capture spiders to provide their offspring with food. The paralysed spider is cached in a burrow, the wasp lays an egg on it, and when this hatches, the developing wasp larva consumes the spider. This species is found in sandy heathland across most of Europe.
Anoplius infuscatus is a species of spider wasp found mainly in Eurasia.
Anoplius concinnus is a widespread Eurasian species of spider wasp.
Anoplius americanus is a species of blue-black spider wasp which is widely distributed in the New World.
Tachypompilus ferrugineus, the rusty spider wasp, red-tailed spider hunter, or sometimes red-tailed spider wasp is a species of spider wasp from the Americas. It preys mainly on wandering spiders, especially wolf spiders.
Poecilopompilus algidus is a species of spider wasp which is widespread in the Americas.
Ceropales bipunctata, the Two-Speckled Cuckoo Spider Wasp, is a species of diurnal, kleptoparasitic spider wasp in the family Pompilidae. It is an obligate kleptoparasite, meaning that it must rely on the captured provisions of other spider wasps and cannot capture its own. It is found on the Atlantic Coast of North America, north to New Brunswick, Canada. It feeds on nectar primarily from goldenrods, and also other common nectaring plants. It is known to lay an egg on the prey of other pompilids, including the two species Anoplius cleora and Anoplius aethiops. Eggs are laid in the book lung of the spider. These wasps also sometimes lay an egg on prey from spider-hunting wasps in the family Sphecidae.
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