Species: Spider-hunting wasp - unnamed 1 (Auplopus carbonarius)
Family: Spider-hunting wasps (POMPILIDAE)
Category: Insects (Other)
Location: One Sighting
A. Insects (Other)
More extensive information on insects can be found in a separate blog post.
B. Spider-hunting wasps (POMPILIDAE)
There are several Spider-hunting wasps, Pompilidae found in Britain, although worldwide there are as many as 5,000 members of this family. All species are solitary and most capture and paralyse their prey. These wasps are strong fliers and can also use their forelegs to dig.
These solitary wasps are generally nectar-feeding and capture spiders to feed to their larvae. Each species of pomilidae wasp tends to have a preference for a particular species of spider, a species-loyalty pattern that is familiar across the animal kingdom.
C. Spider-hunting wasp - unnamed 1 (Auplopus carbonarius)
Auplopus carbonarius is a small wasp, no more than 10 millimetres in length. The ivory-coloured markings beside the eyes are a distinguishing characteristic.
These wasps are unique among the British members of this family in that they construct barrel-shaped cells in which captured and paralysed spiders can be kept as their larvae develop. The wasp often amputates the legs of captured spiders to simplify their transport (by flight or on the ground) to their nest. These nests can contain as many as ten cells, each containing its own spider. The wasp also collects water to aid in the nest-building process.
Images
Spider-hunting wasp - unnamed 1 (Auplopus carbonarius)
Auplopus carbonarius is unique among the British members of this family in that they construct barrel-shaped cells in which captured and paralysed spiders can be kept as their larvae develop. The wasp often amputates the legs of captured spiders to simplify their transport (by flight or on the ground) to their nest. These nests can contain as many as ten cells, each containing its own spider. The wasp also collects water to aid in the nest-building process.
(Photo credit: Stuart MA Ball.)
