Forum Acta Plantarum

Loreto - Baja California (Messico), 300 m, mar 2016
Foto di Gabriella Barbi

Tarantula hawk wasp (Pepsis formosa)
ref: The New World tarantula-hawk wasp genus Pepsis Fabricius (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae).
Part 2. The P. grossa- to P. deaurata-groups pag 58 e seg. (LINK -PDF)

Tarantula Hawk Wasp (Pepsis formosa), is notorious for having the most painful insect sting in North America (& 2nd most painful in the world)
(https://it.pinterest.com/pin/78461218478484527/)

Tarantula hawks are members of the family Pompilidae that, as their name suggests, prey on tarantulas. A female tarantula hawk can smell a tarantula and, after finding its burrow, will go inside and force the tarantula out. A battle ensues as the wasp attempts to sting the tarantula, often by flipping it on its back.

If the wasp succeeds in stinging the tarantula, the tarantula will become paralyzed, and that's where the real horror begins. The wasp will drag the tarantula back to its own burrow and lay an egg in its abdomen. Once the egg hatches, the larva inside will have huge heap of spider meat to feast one. It's enough to make one feel terrible for the tarantula.
guarda il video:
https://youtu.be/m982c-H8VpE