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.
Episyron is a genus of wasps in the family Pompilidae which prey on spiders. Nine species are found in Europe.
The Pompilinae are a subfamily of the spider wasp family, Pompilidae, the species of which lay their eggs on the paralyzed bodies of their prey.
Pompilus is a genus of spider wasps in the family Pompilidae, the members of which prey on spiders. There are seven species recognised in Pompilus sensu stricto. It is the type genus of the family Pompilidae and the subfamily Pompilinae.
The Pepsinae are a subfamily of the spider wasp family, Pompilidae, including the two genera of large tarantula hawks, as well as many genera of smaller species.
Dipogon is a genus of spider wasps of the family Pompilidae in the subfamily Pepsinae. They are found in Europe, Asia, and North America. Their generic name comes from the characteristic long bristle tufts just below the mandibles, which are used to carry material to construct the cells in the nest, and for constructing the nest.
Auplopus is a large genus of spider wasps belonging to the subfamily Pepsinae of the spider wasp family Pompilidae, distributed throughout the world except for Antarctica. Auplopus wasps amputate the legs of their spider prey before transporting it to the nest.
Ceropales maculata is a kleptoparasitic spider wasp found in the holoarctic region.
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.
Aporus is a genus of spider wasps from the family Pompilidae, they specialise in hunting ground dwelling spiders in their burrows for laying eggs on.
Priocnemis is a genus of pepsine spider wasp containing around 30 species.
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.
Batozonellus is a genus of the spider hunting wasps.
Tachypompilus is a genus of spider wasps, found in the Neotropics Nearctic, eastern Palearctic, Indomalayan and Afrotropics.
Hemipepsis is a genus of large pepsine spider wasps found throughout the tropics. They are commonly known as tarantula hawks. Hemipepsis wasps are morphologically similar to the related genera Pepsis and Entypus, but distinguishable by the pattern of wing venation. In South Africa 18 plant species from three plant families, the Apocynaceae, Orchidaceae, and Asparagaceae subfamily Scilloideae are pollinated exclusively by Hemipepsis wasps.
Entypus is a genus of spider wasps in the family Pompilidae. There are at least 40 described species in Entypus.
Pepsini is a tribe of spider wasps in the family Pompilidae.
Psorthaspis is a genus of spider wasps in the family Pompilidae. There are more than 30 described species in Psorthaspis.
Notocyphus is a genus of spider wasps, belonging to the family Pompilidae. They are the only genus in the monotypic subfamily Notocyphinae. These wasps are found in the Nearctic and the Neotropics.
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.
