Editing Tarantula hawk

{{Short description|Common name for two genera of wasps}}
{{Paraphyletic group
| auto = yes
| image = Tarantula Hawk, Southeastern Colorado P1270150b.jpg
| image_caption = male ''[[Pepsis]]'' on a [[milkweed]] plant
| parent = Pepsini
| includes_text = Genera with tarantula hawk species
| includes = *''[[Pepsis]]''
*''[[Hemipepsis]]''
}}
A '''tarantula hawk''' is a [[spider wasp]] (Pompilidae) that preys on [[tarantula]]s. Tarantula hawks belong to any of the many species in the genera ''[[Pepsis]]'' and ''[[Hemipepsis]].'' They are some of the largest [[parasitoid wasp]]s, using their sting to paralyze their prey before dragging it into a brood nest as living food; a single egg is laid on the prey, hatching to a larva, which then eats the still-living host. They are found on all continents other than [[Europe]] and [[Antarctica]].

==Description==
These wasps grow up to {{convert|6.5|cm|frac=4}} long, making them among the largest of wasps, and have blue-black bodies and bright, rust-colored wings (other species have black wings with blue highlights). The vivid coloration found on their bodies, and especially wings, is [[aposematic]], advertising to potential predators the wasps' ability to deliver a powerful sting. Their long legs have hooked claws for grappling with their victims. The [[stinger]] of a female ''[[Pepsis grossa]]'' can be up to {{convert|12|mm|in|frac=32|abbr=on}} long, and the powerful sting is considered one of the most painful insect stings in the world.<ref name=Starr1985>{{cite journal | last=Starr |first= C.K. | year=1985 | title=A simple pain scale for field comparison of Hymenopteran stings | journal=Journal of Entomological Science | volume=20 | issue=2 | pages=225–231 | url=http://www.ckstarr.net/cks/1985-PAIN.pdf|doi= 10.18474/0749-8004-20.2.225 }}</ref><ref name=Schmidt1983>{{cite journal |doi=10.1002/arch.940010205|pages=155–160|title=Hemolytic activities of stinging insect venoms |journal=Archives of Insect Biochemistry and Physiology |volume=1 |issue=2 |year=1983 |last1=Schmidt |first1=Justin O. |last2=Blum |first2=Murray S. |last3=Overal |first3=William L.}}</ref>

==Behavior==
The female tarantula hawk wasp stings a tarantula between the legs, paralyzing it, and then drags the prey to a specially prepared burrow, where a single [[egg (biology)|egg]] is laid on the spider's abdomen, and the burrow entrance is covered.<ref name="BBC Earth 2015">{{cite web | title=The wasp that kills tarantulas | website=BBC Earth | date=13 January 2015  | url=http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20150109-the-wasp-that-scares-tarantulas | access-date=15 January 2015}}</ref> Sex of offspring is determined by fertilization; fertilized eggs produce females, while unfertilized eggs produce males.<ref name="BBC Earth 2015"/> When the wasp [[larva]] hatches, it creates a small hole in the spider's [[abdomen]], then enters and feeds voraciously, avoiding vital [[organ (anatomy)|organ]]s for as long as possible to keep the spider alive.<ref name="BBC Earth 2015"/> After several weeks, the larva [[pupa]]tes. Finally, the wasp becomes an adult and emerges from the spider's abdomen to continue the life cycle.

Adult tarantula hawks are [[nectarivorous]]. While the wasps tend to be most active in the daytime in summer, they tend to avoid high temperatures. The male tarantula hawk does not hunt. Both males and females feed on the flowers of [[milkweeds]], [[western soapberry]] trees, or [[mesquite]] trees.<ref name="desertmuseum">{{cite book |editor1-last=Phillips |editor1-first=Steven J. |editor2-last=Comus |editor2-first=Patricia Wentworth |title=A Natural History of the Sonoran Desert |url=https://archive.org/details/naturalhistoryof00ariz |url-access=registration |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |year=2000 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/naturalhistoryof00ariz/page/464 464–466] |isbn=0-520-21980-5}}</ref> Male tarantula hawks have been observed practicing a behavior called [[Hill-topping (biology)|hill-topping]], in which they sit atop tall plants and watch for passing females ready to reproduce. The males can become resident defenders of the favorable reproduction spots for hours into the afternoon.<ref>{{cite journal
| last1      = Alcock
| first1     = J.
| date       = 2017
| title      = A long-term study of male territoriality in the tarantula hawk wasp (''Hemipepsis ustulata''; Pompilidae) in Central Arizona
| journal    = The Southwestern Naturalist
| volume     = 62 
| issue      = 2
| pages      = 109–112
| doi        = 10.1894/0038-4909-62.2.109
| s2cid = 90778145
| name-list-style = vanc
}}</ref> Females are not very aggressive, in that they are hesitant to sting, but the sting is extraordinarily painful.<ref name=Starr1985/>

==Distribution==
Worldwide distribution of tarantula hawks includes areas from [[India]] to [[Southeast Asia]], Africa,<ref>[https://www.gbif.org/species/4505048 GBIF]</ref> Australia, and the Americas, with the genus ''[[Pepsis]]'' entirely restricted to the New World. In the latter, ''Pepsis'' species have been observed from as far north as [[Logan, Utah]], and south as far as [[Argentina]], with at least 250 species living in South America.<ref name="urlTarantula Hawks - DesertUSA">{{cite web |url=http://www.desertusa.com/mag01/sep/papr/thawk.html |title=Tarantula Hawks |access-date=2010-07-26}}</ref> Eighteen species of ''Pepsis'' and three species of ''[[Hemipepsis]]'' are found in the United States,<ref name="urlBugGuide">{{cite web |url=http://bugguide.net/node/view/3920 |title=Bug Guide - Pepsis - Tarantula Hawks |access-date=2016-05-05 }}</ref> primarily in the deserts of the Southwestern United States, with ''[[Pepsis grossa]]'' (formerly ''P. formosa'')<ref>Vardy, C.R. (2002). [http://www.repository.naturalis.nl/document/46718 "The New World tarantula-hawk wasp genus ''Pepsis'' Fabricius (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae). Part 2. The ''P. grossa''- to ''P. deaurata''-groups."]</ref> and ''[[Pepsis thisbe]]'' being common.{{citation needed|date=July 2015}} The two species are difficult to distinguish, but most ''P. grossa'' wasps have metallic blue bodies and reddish [[Antenna (biology)|antennae]], which separate them from ''P. thisbe''. Both species have bright orange wings that become transparent near the tip.

==Sting==
Tarantula hawk wasps<!--multiple species--> are relatively docile and rarely sting without provocation, but the sting—particularly that of ''P. grossa''—is among the most painful of all insects, though the intense pain only lasts about five minutes.<ref>{{cite news |last=Conniff |first=Richard |title=Oh, Sting, Where Is Thy Death? |work=The New York Times |date=2009-08-10 |url=http://happydays.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/10/oh-sting-where-is-thy-death/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150914205656/http://happydays.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/10/oh-sting-where-is-thy-death/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=2015-09-14 |access-date=2010-05-24}}</ref> One researcher described the pain as "...immediate, excruciating, unrelenting pain that simply shuts down one's ability to do anything, except scream. Mental discipline simply does not work in these situations."<ref name="urlTarantula Hawks - DesertUSA"/> In terms of scale, the wasp's sting is rated near the top of the [[Schmidt sting pain index]], second only to that of the [[Paraponera clavata|bullet ant]], and is described by Schmidt as "blinding, fierce[, and] shockingly electric".<ref name=Schmidt1983/> Because of their extremely large [[stinger]]s, very few animals are able to eat them; one of the few that can is the [[Geococcyx|roadrunner]]. Many predatory animals avoid these wasps, and many different insects [[mimicry|mimic]] them, including various other wasps and [[bee]]s ([[Müllerian mimicry|Müllerian mimic]]s), as well as [[moth]]s, [[fly|flies]] (e.g., [[Mydaidae|mydas flies]]), and [[beetle]]s (e.g., ''[[Tragidion]]'') ([[Batesian mimic]]s).

Aside from the possibility of triggering an allergic reaction, the sting is not dangerous and does not require medical attention. Local redness appears in most cases after the pain, and lasts for up to a week.

==State insect of New Mexico==
The [[U.S. state]] of [[New Mexico]] chose a species of tarantula hawk (specifically, ''P. formosa'', now known as ''P. grossa'') in 1989 to become its official [[List of U.S. state insects|state insect]]. Its selection was prompted by a group of elementary-school children from [[Edgewood, New Mexico|Edgewood]] doing research on states that had adopted state insects. They selected three insects as candidates and mailed ballots to all schools for a statewide election. The winner was the tarantula hawk wasp.<ref>{{cite book |title=NM Legislature visitors guide |publisher=New Mexico Legislature |page=33 |url=https://www.nmlegis.gov/lcs/lcsdocs/NMLegHandbook01-05.pdf#page=33 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171121171932/https://www.nmlegis.gov/lcs/lcsdocs/NMLegHandbook01-05.pdf#page=33 |url-status=dead |archive-date=2017-11-21 }}</ref>

{{Gallery
|title=Tarantula hawk wasp
|width=160 | height=170 |align=center
|File:Pepsis sp 02.jpg |
 alt1= 
 |Male tarantula hawk at [[Grant Ranch Park|Grant Ranch County Park]], near [[San Jose, California]]
|File:Wasp with Orange-kneed tarantula.JPG |
 alt2= 
 |Tarantula hawk dragging a paralysed orange-kneed tarantula, [[Costa Rica]]
|File:T-Hawk stinging organ.JPG |
 alt3= 
 |Tarantula hawk stinger
|File:T-Hawk blue-black body.JPG |
 alt4= 
 |Tarantula hawk's blue-black abdomen
}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Pepsis}}
{{Wikispecies|Pepsis}}
*[http://undark.org/article/tarantula-hawk-wasp-sting-pain/ '"Instantaneous, Electrifying, Excruciating Pain"], book excerpt by entomologist [[Justin O. Schmidt]]

[[Category:Pepsinae]]
[[Category:Aposematic species]]