Mating western cicada killers, Sphecius grandis (Big Bend, Texas, USA). The male is uppermost.
Scientific classification
Domain:
Eukaryota
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Hymenoptera
Family:
Crabronidae
Subtribe:
Spheciina
Genus:
Sphecius Dahlbom, 1844
Type species
Sphecius speciosus
(Drury, 1773)
Species
Some 21, see text
Cicada killer wasps (genus Sphecius) are large, solitary, ground-dwelling, predatory wasps. They are so named because they hunt cicadas and provision their nests with them, after stinging and paralyzing them. Twenty-one species worldwide are recognized. The highest diversity occurs in the region between North Africa and Central Asia.
In North America, the term "cicada killer wasp" usually refers to the most well-known species, the eastern cicada killer (S. speciosus). A few other related genera also are sometimes referred to as "cicada killers", e.g. Liogorytes in South America and Exeirus in Australia.
The use of cicadas as prey is in keeping with the typical behavior of the tribe Gorytini, which tend to specialize on various members of the Cicadomorpha as prey items.
Sphecius speciosus, often simply referred to as the cicada killer or the cicada hawk, is a large, solitary digger wasp species in the family Crabronidae...
Sphecius grandis, also called the western cicada killer, is a species of cicada killer wasp (Sphecius). The western species shares the same nesting biology...
America and North America. "Sphecius convallis Report". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 2019-09-23. "Sphecius convallis". GBIF. Retrieved...
Red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta) 1.5 Western cicada killer (Sphecius grandis) 2.0 Honeybee,[which?] Africanized bee, Bumblebees,[which?] Yellowjackets...
predatory wasp. It is related to the more common genus of cicada killers, Sphecius. In Australia, E. lateritius hunts over 200 species of cicada. The wasps...
wasps such as the European hornet (V. crabro), the eastern cicada killer (Sphecius speciosus), or the southern yellowjacket (Vespula squamosa). Submissions...
cicadas as prey. It is related to the more common genus of cicada killers, Sphecius. Bohart, Richard M.; Bohart, Richard Mitchell; Menke, Arnold S. (1976-01-01)...
virginica), red paper wasp (Polistes carolina), eastern cicada killer (Sphecius speciosus), red velvet ant (Dasymutilla occidentalis) and red imported...
c g Sericophorus F. Smith, 1851 i c g Solierella Spinola, 1851 i c g b Sphecius Dahlbom, 1843 i c g b (cicada killers) Sphodrotes Kohl, 1889 i c g Spilomena...
Stizus are large, and superficially resemble cicada-killer wasps (genus Sphecius, in the related tribe Gorytini), and members of the genus Stizoides are...
Paraphilanthus Handlirshina Handlirschia Pterygorytes Spheciina Ammatomus Kohlia Sphecius Tanyoprymnus Trachogorytes is recognised as a synonym of Mellinus, a genus...
Global Information
