wasp: Solitary Wasps

Among the solitary wasps, each species usually favors a particular type of prey. The female seals a single egg in a nest provided with paralyzed prey on which the developing larva feeds. In many species the nest is in a burrow or small hole dug by the female. The jug-shaped nests of the potter, or mason, wasps (Eumenes and other genera) of Europe and North America are made of mud and fastened to plants. Often seen under bridges and eaves are the nests of the organ pipe mud dauber (Trypoxylon politum), consisting of long, narrow, adjacent cells of mud. Other solitary wasps are the tarantula hawks (Pepsis and Hemipepsis species) and cicada killers (Sphecius) of the SW United States, which hunt prey much larger than themselves.

Sections in this article:

• Introduction
• Classification
• Parasitic Wasps
• Solitary Wasps
• Social Wasps

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