| Episyron quinquenotatus | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Pompilidae |
| Genus: | Episyron |
| Species: | E. quinquenotatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Episyron quinquenotatus | |
Episyron quinquenotatus, the white-trimmed black wasp, is a North American species of pompilid spider hunting wasp.
The body length is approximately 10 mm. The body is mostly black with white markings: a thin line behind each eye, with a second line on side of face bordering inner edge of eye, a thin white crescent along the headward edge of the thorax is broken in the middle, and three white wedge-shaped markings on each side of the abdomen with the central spot, larger than the other two, and may meet in the middle to form a continuous band. Small white spots may be present at tip of abdomen and at base of each wing; wings dusky, darker toward the tips; female front tarsus with a comb of 4 to 6 spines, used for digging the breeding burrows. [2]
From Yukon and Northwest Territories south to the Gulf of Mexico states such as Texas, Arkansas and Alabama. [3]
E. q. quinquenotatus in the eastern part of the range
E. q. hurdi in the western part of the range. [2]
Sandy, open areas, often by waterbodies.
Adult females search for orb weaver spiders and paralyse captured prey by stinging the spider on the underside of the cephalothorax. The wasp digs a burrow in loose sandy soil using the combs on its front legs and draws the paralysed spider into it, it then lays an egg on the spider's abdomen which hatches in two or three days, when the grub begins to feed on the soft tissue of the spider. [2] Grubs which hatch too late in the season to mature will often go into diapause over the winter. [4]
A tarantula hawk is a spider wasp (Pompilidae) that preys on tarantulas. Tarantula hawks belong to any of the many species in the genera Pepsis and Hemipepsis. They are one of the largest parasitoid wasps, using their sting to paralyze their prey before dragging it to a brood nest as living food; a single egg is laid on the prey, hatching to a larva which eats the still-living prey.
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.
Volucella pellucens, the pellucid fly, is a hoverfly.
Philanthus triangulum, commonly known as the European beewolf, bee-killer wasp or the bee-eating philanthus, is a solitary wasp that lives in the Western Palearctic and Afrotropics. Although the adults of the species are herbivores, the species derives its name from the behaviour of the inseminated females, who hunt Western honey bees. The female places several of its paralysed prey together with an egg in a small underground chamber, to serve as food for the wasp larvae. All members of the genus Philanthus hunt various species of bees, but P. triangulum is apparently the only one that specialises in Western honey bees.
Phidippus californicus is a species of jumping spider. It is found in the southwestern United States and northern Mexico.
Heliophanus tribulosus is a species of 'jumping spiders' belonging to the family Salticidae.
Ammophila sabulosa, the red-banded sand wasp, is a species of the subfamily Ammophilinae of the hunting wasp family Sphecidae. Found in northern Europe, the wasp is notable for the mass provisioning behaviour of the females, hunting caterpillars mainly on sunny days, paralysing them with a sting, and burying them in a burrow with a single egg. The species is also remarkable for the extent to which females parasitise their own species, either stealing prey from nests of other females to provision their own nests, or in brood parasitism, removing the other female's egg and laying one of her own instead.
Episyron gallicum is a spider-eating wasp which, as its name suggests, has a distribution centred on France.
Episyron is a genus of wasps in the family Pompilidae which prey on spiders. Nine species are found in Europe.
Episyron rufipes, the red-legged spider wasp, is a red and black or completely black spider-hunting wasp.
Pompilus cinereus, the leaden spider wasp is the most widespread species of the Pompilus spider wasps, and throughout a large proportion of its wide distribution is the only species of Pompilus. It is the type species of the genus Pompilus and therefore of the family Pompilidae.
Cryptocheilus bicolor is a large, strikingly coloured spider wasp from Australia.
Sphictostethus nitidus, the golden hunter wasp or red spider wasp, is a species of pepsid spider wasp endemic to New Zealand.
Agenioideus cinctellus is a spider wasp of the subfamily Pompilinae with a Palearctic distribution.
Caliadurgus fasciatellus is a species of spider wasp from the subfamily Pepsinae found from Western Europe to the Far East of Asia.
Ammophila urnaria is a species of hunting wasp in the family Sphecidae. It is a black and red insect native to the eastern United States. It feeds on nectar but catches and paralyses caterpillars to leave in underground chambers for its developing larvae to consume.
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.
Poecilopompilus algidus is a species of spider wasp which is widespread in the Americas.
Pepsis grossa is a very large species of pepsine spider wasp from the southern part of North America, south to northern South America. It preys on tarantula spiders, giving rise to the name tarantula hawk for the wasps in the genus Pepsis and the related Hemipepsis. Only the females hunt, so only they are capable of delivering a sting, which is considered the second most painful of any insect sting; scoring 4.0 on the Schmidt sting pain index compared to the bullet ant's 4.0+. It is the state insect of New Mexico. The colour morphs are the xanthic orange-winged form and the melanic black winged form. In northern South America, a third form, known as "lygamorphic", has a dark base to the wings which have dark amber median patches and a pale tip.
 | This Vespoidea-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |