{{Short description|Family of wasps}} {{Automatic taxobox | name = Spider wasp | fossil_range = {{Fossil range|Ypresian|Recent}} | image = Spiderwasp1_feb09.jpg | image_caption = ''Heterodontonyx bicolor '' captures a large huntsman spider in Western Australia | taxon = Pompilidae | authority = Latreille, 1804 | subdivision_ranks = Subfamilies | subdivision = see text }}
'''Pompilidae''' is a family of wasps commonly called '''spider wasps''', '''spider-hunting wasps''',<ref>{{cite web |title=Pompilidae Spider-Hunting Wasp |url=https://species.nbnatlas.org/species/NBNSYS0000160778 |publisher=NBN Atlas |access-date=10 August 2019}}</ref> or '''pompilid wasps'''.<ref name="CostaPérez-Miles2004">{{cite journal|last1=Costa|first1=Fernando G.|last2=Pérez-Miles|first2=Fernando|last3=Mignone|first3=Antonio|title=Pompilid Wasp Interactions with Burrowing Tarantulas: ''Pepsis cupripennis'' versus ''Eupalaestrus weijenberghi'' and ''Acanthoscurria suina'' (Araneae, Theraphosidae)|journal=Studies on Neotropical Fauna and Environment|volume=39|issue=1|date=April 2004|pages=37–43|url=http://iibce.edu.uy/PepsiPruebasPag.pdf|access-date=20 April 2012|issn=0165-0521|oclc=231044349|doi=10.1080/01650520412331270945|bibcode=2004SNFE...39...37C |s2cid=84475545}}</ref> The family is cosmopolitan, with some 5,000 species in six subfamilies.<ref name=Pitts2005>{{cite journal|title=Preliminary morphological analysis of relationships between the spider wasp subfamilies (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae): revisiting an old problem|author1=Pitts, James P. |author2=Wasbauer MS |author3=von Dohlen CD |name-list-style=amp |year=2005|doi=10.1111/j.1463-6409.2005.00217.x|journal=Zoologica Scripta|volume=35|issue=1|pages=63–84|s2cid=86180326 }}</ref> Nearly all species are solitary (with the exception of some group-nesting Ageniellini<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Evans | first1 = H.E. | last2 = Shimizu | first2 = A. | year = 1996 | title = The evolution of nest building and communal nesting in Ageniellini (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Pompilidae) | journal = Journal of Natural History | volume = 30 | issue = 11| pages = 1633–1648 | doi = 10.1080/00222939600770961 | bibcode = 1996JNatH..30.1633E }}</ref>), and most capture and paralyze prey, though members of the subfamily Ceropalinae are kleptoparasites of other pompilids, or ectoparasitoids of living spiders.<ref name=goulet/>
In South America, species may be referred to colloquially as {{lang|es|marabunta}} or {{lang|es|marimbondo}}, though these names can be generally applied to any very large stinging wasps. Furthermore, in some parts of Venezuela and Colombia, it is called {{lang|es|matacaballos}}, or "horse killers", while in Brazil some particular bigger and brighter species of the general {{lang|pt|marimbondo}} kind might be called {{lang|pt|fecha-goela}}/{{lang|pt|cerra-goela}}, or "throat locker".{{citation needed|date=January 2026}}
== Morphology == Like other strong fliers, pompilids have a thorax modified for efficient flight. The metathorax is solidly fused to the pronotum and mesothorax; moreover, the prothorax is best developed in Pompilidae and Scoliidae because wasps in these families use their forelegs to dig.<ref name="Daly1998" />
thumb|left|200px|An unidentified spider wasp Pompilids typically have long, spiny legs; the hind femur is often long enough to reach past the tip of the abdomen. The tibiae of the rear legs usually have a conspicuous spine at their distal end. The first two segments of the abdomen are narrow, giving the body a slender look. The pompilid body is typically dark (black or blue, sometimes with metallic reflections), but many brightly colored species exist. From a lateral view, its pronotum looks rectangular and it extends back to the tegulae, near the base of the wings. Most species are macropterous (having long wings), but a few brachypterous (short-winged) and apterous (no wings) species are known.<ref name=Pitts2005/>
Spider wasps are best distinguished from vespoid wasps in having (in most species) a transverse groove bisecting the mesopleuron (the mesepisternal sclerite, a region on the side of middle segment of the thorax above the point where the legs join). They have antennae with 10 flagellomeres in females and 11 in males. Most Pompilidae have straight inner eye margins. The hind wings do not have a distinct claval lobe, but they have a distinctive jugal lobe. The hind leg has a tibial spur with a tuft or row of fine hairs. The legs are long and slender with the tips of the tibia (metatibia) long enough to extend beyond the tip of the abdomen (metasoma). Sexual dimorphism is not pronounced, although females are often larger than the males. Coloration and wing appearance vary greatly among the many species. General coloration is aposematic (warning off predators), generally based on black, often with markings of orange, red, yellow, or white.<ref name=goulet>{{cite book |editor=Goulet, H |editor2=Huber, JT |year=1993 |title= Hymenoptera of the world: an identification guide to families |publisher=Agriculture Canada |pages=202–205}}</ref> Larvae can also be identified by physical examination.{{citation needed|date=January 2026}}
== Systematics == The Pompilidae have in the past been split into either 4 or 6 subfamilies.{{Citation needed|date=January 2026}} However, phylogenetic analyses based on morphological data have suggested that Notocyphinae is nested within the Pompilinae, while Epipompilinae is nested within the Ctenocerinae.<ref name="Pitts2005" /> This would leave 4 subfamilies as monophyletic clades, with Ceropalinae being sister to the other subfamilies, and Pepsinae being the sister clade to the Ctenocerinae and Pompilinae.<ref name = Pitts2005/>
Analyses using four nuclear molecular markers have resurrected the Notocyphinae as a subfamily, resulting in 5 subfamilies within Pompilidae.<ref name="Waichert2015" /> In this classification, Ctenocerinae are sister to the remaining lineages in the family; Pepsinae and Notocyphinae are sister taxa, as are Pepsinae and Pompilinae.<ref name="Waichert2015" /> They placed the genus ''Epipompilus'' in the Pepsinae.<ref name="Waichert2015">{{cite journal | last1 = Waichert | first1 = Cecilia | last2 = Rodriguez | first2 = Juanita |last3 = Wasbauer | first3 = Marius | last4 = von Dohlen | first4 = Carol | last5 = Pitts | first5 = James | name-list-style = amp | year = 2015 | title = Molecular phylogeny and systematics of spider wasps (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae): Redefining subfamily boundaries and the origin of the family | journal = Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society | volume = 175 | issue = 2 | pages = 271–287 | doi = 10.1111/zoj.12272| doi-access = free | url = https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2030&context=biology_facpub | url-access = subscription }}</ref> thumb|''Notocyphus dorsalis'' The subfamilies according to Waichert et al are:<ref name=Waichert2015/>
*Ceropalinae, containing 2 genera, ''Ceropales'' and ''Irenangelus'' *Notocyphinae, containing a single genus, ''Notocyphus'', distributed in both the Nearctic and Neotropics *Ctenocerinae, containing 26 genera,<ref name=Loktionov2023/><ref name=WaspWeb/> including 2 genera in the Neotropics, 4 in Australia and 11 in Africa *Pepsinae, a diverse subfamily containing 84 genera,<ref name=Loktionov2023/> distributed worldwide except for Antarctica *Pompilinae, a diverse subfamily containing 107 genera,<ref name=Loktionov2023/> distributed worldwide except for Antarctica
== Evolution == The oldest fossil currently known is an indeterminate fossil from the Early Eocene (Ypresian) Klondike Mountain Formation of Washington State, USA.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Archibald|first1=S. B.|last2=Rasnitsyn|first2=Alexandr P.|last3=Brothers|first3=Denis J.|last4=Mathewes|first4=Rolf W.|date=2018-01-08|title=Modernisation of the Hymenoptera: ants, bees, wasps, and sawflies of the early Eocene Okanagan Highlands of western North America|journal=The Canadian Entomologist|volume=150|issue=2|pages=205–257|doi=10.4039/tce.2017.59|bibcode=2018CaEnt.150..205A |s2cid=90017208|issn=0008-347X}}</ref> Other fossil species are known from Dominican and Baltic ambers, the Florissant Formation and various other localities in Germany, France and Spain.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Rodriguez|first1=Juanita|last2=Waichert|first2=Cecilia|last3=von Dohlen|first3=Carol D.|last4=Pitts|first4=James P.|date=2017-10-11|editor-last=Wong|editor-first=William Oki|title=The geological record and phylogeny of spider wasps (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae): A revision of fossil species and their phylogenetic placement|journal=PLOS ONE|language=en|volume=12|issue=10|article-number=e0185379|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0185379|issn=1932-6203|pmc=5636076|pmid=29020022|bibcode=2017PLoSO..1285379R |doi-access=free}}</ref> ''Bryopompilus'' described from the mid Cretaceous Burmese amber was initially thought to belong to this family; however, it was subsequently placed in its own family, the Bryopompilidae.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Rodriguez|first1=Juanita|last2=Waichert|first2=Cecilia|last3=von Dohlen|first3=Carol|last4=Poinar Jr.|first4=George|last5=Pitts|first5=James|date=2015|title=Eocene and not Cretaceous origin of spider wasps (Pompilidae): fossil evidence from amber|url=http://www.app.pan.pl/article/item/app000732014.html|journal=Acta Palaeontologica Polonica|doi=10.4202/app.00073.2014|doi-access=free}}</ref>
== Ecology and behavior == [[File:Spider wasp with prey.ogv|thumb|Video of an unidentified spider wasp with prey (23s)]] Unlike many other families in the Aculeata, essentially all wasps in this family are solitary (nests made by a single female).<ref>{{cite web | title=Spider wasps | website=CSIRO | date=14 October 2011 | url=http://www.csiro.au/resources/Spider-Wasp-Factsheet | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120616045213/http://www.csiro.au/resources/Spider-Wasp-Factsheet | archive-date=16 June 2012 | url-status=dead }}</ref>
Adult pompilids are nectar-feeding insects and feed on a variety of plants. Depending on genus and species, pompilids capture a variety of spiders for their larvae to feed on, covering nearly all free-living spider families, including tarantulas, wolf spiders (Lycosidae), huntsman spiders (Sparassidae), jumping spiders (Salticidae) and baboon spiders (Harpactirinae), though any given pompilid tends to attack only a limited diversity of spiders.{{citation needed|date=January 2026}}
A female wasp searches the ground and/or vegetation for a spider, and upon finding one, stings it, paralyzing the spider. The targeted spider is typically unable to kill the wasp, because the wasp can just fly out of reach, so at best the spider fights fiercely to escape.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/death-match-tarantula-vs-wasp/|title = Death Match: Tarantula vs. Wasp| date=10 April 2014 }}</ref> Tarantula hawks (Pepsini) do not attack when adult tarantulas are close to or in their burrows. Instead, the wasps seek out adult males who have left their burrows in search of females to mate with. In the open the wasp first uses its wings to beat air over the tarantula, deceiving the tarantula into thinking that it is being targeted by a large bird so the tarantula reacts by curling up to appear smaller and less noticeable, which in turn makes the tarantula defenseless against the wasp's attack. However, Brazilian Wandering spiders (''Phoneutria'') and their predators have a different interaction dynamic, and the spiders often manage to defeat the hunting wasp.{{citation needed|date=November 2022}}
Once the spider is paralyzed, a female pompilid digs a burrow or flies or drags the spider to a previously made burrow.<ref name="AusMus">[https://australianmuseum.net.au/spider-wasps Spider Wasps] Australian Museum Online</ref> Because of the large body size of their prey, tarantula hawks usually will either construct burrows near the site of attack or use the host's own burrow or tunnel. Pompilids typically provide each of their larvae with a single prey/host, which must be large enough to serve as its food source throughout its development. Typically, a single egg is laid on the abdomen of the spider, and the nest or burrow is closed so the larva can develop without disruption by other parasites or scavengers.<ref name="AusMus" /> The female wasp may then engage in spreading soil or other changes to the area, leaving the nest site inconspicuous. One species of spider wasp protects its nests by putting dead ants into the outermost chamber, where the ants' chemicals deter predators.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sciencenews.org/blog/wild-things/dead-ant-wall-protects-young-spider-wasps |title=Dead-ant wall protects young spider wasps |publisher=Science News |date=2014-07-07 |access-date=2014-07-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=A Unique Nest-Protection Strategy in a New Species of Spider Wasp |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=9 |issue=7 |article-number=e101592 |date=2014-07-02 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0101592 |last1 = Staab|first1 = Michael|last2=Ohl |first2=Michael |last3=Zhu |first3=Chao-Dong |last4=Klein |first4=Alexandra-Maria |url=http://pure.leuphana.de/ws/files/10783492/10.13712Fjournal.pone.0101592.PDF |pmid=24987876 |pmc=4079592|bibcode=2014PLoSO...9j1592S |doi-access=free }}</ref> [[Image:Wasp and spider 02.jpg|thumb|left|''Sphictostethus nitidus'' dragging a spider to its nest]]
The egg hatches and the larva feeds on the spider, breaking through the integument with its mandibles. As the larva feeds on its host, it saves the vital organs, such as the heart and central nervous system, for last. By waiting until the final larval instar, it ensures the spider will not decompose before the larva has fully developed.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Punzo | first1 = F | year = 2005 | title = Studies on the natural history, ecology, and behavior of ''Pepsis cerberus'' and ''P. mexicana'' (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae) from Big Bend National Park, Texas | journal = Journal of the New York Entomological Society | volume = 113 | issue = 1| pages = 84–95 | doi=10.1664/0028-7199(2005)113[0084:sotnhe]2.0.co;2| s2cid = 84879231 }}</ref> The larva has five instar stages before it pupates; no major morphological differences are noted between the first four instars, with the exception of size. At the conclusion of the final instar, the larva spins a durable silk cocoon, and emerges as an adult either later in the same season or overwinters, depending on the species and the time of year the larva pupates.<ref name="Punzo, F 1994"/> Some ceropalines lay their egg on a still-active spider, only temporarily paralyzing it, and the wasp larva feeds externally by extracting hemolymph after the egg hatches. In time, the spider will die, and the mature wasp larva will then pupate.<ref name="Daly1998">{{cite book |last1=Daly |first1=Howell V. |first2=John T. |last2=Doyen |first3=Alexander H. |last3=Purcell |title=Introduction to Insect Biology and Diversity |location=Oxford |publisher=Oxford UP |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-19-510033-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DHNvYqu7MlMC }}</ref>
The size of the host can influence whether the wasp will lay a male or a female egg; larger prey often yield the (larger) females.<ref Name=Iziko>{{cite web |url=http://www.museums.org.za/bio/spiderweb/predator.htm |title=Spider predators and parasites |location= Iziko Museums of Cape Town |publisher=museums.org.za |access-date=28 November 2006}}</ref> ''Pepsis thisbe'' of the southwestern United States exhibits a direct correlation between adult wasp body length and the weight of its host spider, ''Aphonopelma echina''. Because the size of a ''P. thisbe'' adult is determined by the size of the host provided for it by its mother, the seasonal frequency of host sizes implicitly will determine the size variation in adult wasps.<ref name="Punzo, F 1994">{{cite journal | last1 = Punzo | first1 = F | year = 1994 | title = The biology of the spider wasp, ''Pepsis thisbe'' (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae) from Trans Pecos, Texas. I. Adult morphometrics, larval development and the ontogeny of larval feeding patterns | journal = Psyche: A Journal of Entomology | volume = 101 | issue = 3–4| pages = 229–242 | doi=10.1155/1994/70378| doi-access = free }}</ref>
In another study on ''Pepsis thisbe'',<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Punzo | first1 = F. | last2 = Ludwig | first2 = L. | year = 2005 | title = Behavioral Responses of ''Pepsis thisbe'' (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae) to Chemosensory Cues associated with host spiders | journal = Journal of Insect Behavior | volume = 18 | issue = 6| pages = 757–766 | doi=10.1007/s10905-005-8738-0| bibcode = 2005JIBeh..18..757P | s2cid = 22280009 }}</ref> chemosensory cues were shown to be used to detect specific hosts. Specific chemosensory cues attract the wasp to its prey, ''Aphonopelma echina'', despite other host spiders of the same size and frequency being present. In studies on ''Pepsis grossa'' (formerly ''P. formosa''),<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Punzo | first1 = F. | last2 = Garman | first2 = B. | year = 1989 | title = Effects of encounter experience on the hunting behavior of the spider wasp, ''Pepsis formosa'' (Say) (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae) | journal = The Southwestern Naturalist | volume = 34 | issue = 4| pages = 513–518 | doi=10.2307/3671510| jstor = 3671510 | bibcode = 1989SWNat..34..513P }}</ref> a pompilid of the southwestern United States, the wasps were found to have behavioral plasticity. Their hunting behavior concerning their host ''Rhechostica echina'' improved with experience. The time required to complete all behavioral components decreased with each spider killed.{{citation needed|date=January 2026}}
Concerning mating behavior, males acquire perch territories to scan for incoming receptive females. In studies on the tarantula wasp ''Hemipepsis ustulata'',<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Alcock | first1 = J. | last2 = Kemp | first2 = J. | year = 2006 | title = The behavioral significance of male body size in the Tarantula Hawk Wasp ''Hemipepsis ustulata'' (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae) | journal = Ethology | volume = 112 | issue = 7| pages = 691–698 | doi=10.1111/j.1439-0310.2006.01204.x | bibcode = 2006Ethol.112..691A }}</ref> larger males are more likely to acquire perch territories and territorial males appear to increase their chances of mating because receptive females fly to perch sites held by said males.{{citation needed|date=January 2026}}
thumb|center|800px|''Anoplius'' sp. dragging a spider larger than herself backwards across a sandy heath (four stages are shown in the composite image) {{Clear}}
== Sting ==
=== Toxins ===
The Pompilidae produce a venom, delivered when they sting, containing a variety of powerful neurotoxins named pompilidotoxin (PMTX). These inhibit the inactivation of voltage-gated sodium channels, causing too much sodium to flow through neuron cell membranes, causing long bursts of nerve impulses (action potentials), and thus overstimulating these nerves. Alpha- and beta-PMTX are both small peptide chains of just 13 amino acids; alpha-PMTX has been studied in ''Anoplius samariensis'', while beta-PMTX has been studied in ''Batozonellus maculifrons''.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Kawai N, Konno K | title=Molecular determinants of two neurotoxins that regulate sodium current inactivation in rat hippocampal neurons |journal=Neurosci. Lett. |volume=361 | issue=1–3 | pages=44–6 | year=2004 | pmid=15135889 |doi=10.1016/j.neulet.2004.01.006| s2cid=38819369 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Sahara Y, Gotoh M, Konno K, Miwa A, Tsubokawa H, Robinson HP, Kawai N |title=A new class of neurotoxin from wasp venom slows inactivation of sodium current |journal=Eur J Neurosci |volume=12 |issue=6 |pages=1961–70 |year=2000 |pmid=10886337 |doi=10.1046/j.1460-9568.2000.00084.x|s2cid=34486331 }}</ref><ref name="SchiavonStevens2010">{{cite journal |last1=Schiavon |first1=Emanuele |last2=Stevens |first2=Marijke |last3=Zaharenko |first3=André J. |last4=Konno |first4=Katsuhiro |last5=Tytgat |first5=Jan |last6=Wanke |first6=Enzo |title=Voltage-gated sodium channel isoform-specific effects of pompilidotoxins |journal=FEBS Journal |volume=277 |issue=4 |year=2010 |pages=918–930 |issn=1742-464X |doi=10.1111/j.1742-4658.2009.07533.x|pmid=20059541 |doi-access= }}</ref>
=== Schmidt pain index === In 1984, Justin O. Schmidt developed a hymenopteran sting pain scale, now known as the Schmidt sting pain index. In this index, a 0 is given to a sting from an insect that cannot break through human skin, a 2 is given for intermediate pain, and a 4 is given for intense pain. The scale rates stings from 78 different species in 42 different genera.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Berenbaum | first1 = M | year = 2003 | title = A Stinging Commentary | journal = American Entomologist | volume = 49 | issue = 2| pages = 68–69 | doi=10.1093/ae/49.2.68| doi-access = free }}</ref> The species ''Pepsis grossa'', one of the species of tarantula hawk, has a sting rating of 4.<ref>{{cite book | last=Schmidt|first= Justin O. | chapter=Hymenoptera Venoms: Striving Toward the Ultimate Defense Against Vertebrates | editor1=D. L. Evans |editor2= J. O. Schmidt | title=Insect Defenses: Adaptive Mechanisms and Strategies of Prey and Predators | pages=387–419 | publisher=State University of New York Press | location=Albany, New York | year=1990 |isbn=0-88706-896-0}}</ref> The sting is described as "blinding, fierce, and shockingly electric. A running hair dryer has been dropped into your bubble bath."<ref name="stingofthewild">{{cite book|last1=Schmidt|first1=Justin|title=The Sting of the Wild|date=2016|publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|location=Baltimore, Maryland|isbn=978-1-4214-1929-9}}</ref>
==Gallery== <gallery> Anoplius viaticus.jpg|''Anoplius viaticus'' with ''Nuctenea umbratica'' prey, England UK Wasp-Spider Hunting.jpg|''Tachypompilus ferrugineus'', also known as the rusty spider wasp, hunting in Texas, United States Spider wasp 05.JPG|Unidentified spider wasp with its prey near Heemstede, Netherlands Wasp Ants.jpg|Unidentified spider wasp being carried off by ants. Spider-wasp.jpg|An unidentified pompilid from Bangalore, India Deuteragenia subintermedia-pjt1.jpg|Female ''Dipogon subintermedius'' Pompilidae en Quito Ecuador.jpg|An unidentified pompilid has captured a spider in Quito, Ecuador. Spiderwasp2 feb09.jpg|''Heterodontonyx bicolor'' carrying an anaesthetised spider up to a nest in a roof. Spider wasp pompilid.jpg|''Heterodontonyx'' sp. dragging its captured prey in Sydney, Australia. IndianSpiderWasp.JPG|An unidentified Indian spider wasp carrying a jumping spider in Tumkur, India </gallery>
== References == {{Reflist|30em|refs=
<ref name=Loktionov2023> {{cite journal |last=Loktionov |first=Valery M. |date=2023 |title= Geographical distribution of the spider wasps (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae) of the world |journal=Russian Entomological Journal |volume=32 |issue=4 |pages= 394–402 |doi=10.15298/rusentj.32.4.05|doi-access=free }} </ref>
<ref name=WaspWeb> {{cite web |url=http://www.waspweb.org/Vespoidea/Pompilidae/Classification/index.htm |title=Classification and checklist of Afrotropical Pompilidae |accessdate=2012-03-18 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120127041909/http://www.waspweb.org/Vespoidea/Pompilidae/Classification/index.htm |archivedate=2012-01-27 }} </ref>
}}
== External links == {{Commons category|Pompilidae}} {{Wikispecies|Pompilidae}}
*{{cite book| url=https://www.royensoc.co.uk/sites/default/files/Vol06_Part04.pdf |series=Handbooks for the Identification of British Insects, Vol. 6, Part 4 |title=Spider Wasps: Hymenoptera: Pompilidae|author= Day, Michael C.| date=1988|publisher=Royal Entomological Society of London|isbn=0-901546-70-4}} *{{cite web | title=Family: Pompilidae | website=Atlas of Living Australia | url=https://bie.ala.org.au/species/urn:lsid:biodiversity.org.au:afd.taxon:6dd0cb6d-84f0-4e50-a5f3-25d28f7da1ff| publisher= CSIRO}} *{{cite web | first=Roland |last=Günter | title=Hard work for a single egg (Anoplius viaticus) | website=Naturbildarchiv Günter | url=http://www.naturbildarchiv-guenter.de/en/photo-reports/hard-work-for-a-single-egg-anoplius-viaticus/?id=2327&L=1 |others=Created: 2005. Updated: 2016}} A series of photos showing ''Anoplius viaticus'' trapping a spider and fighting off other predators, in order to lay her egg.
{{Hymenoptera|2}} {{Taxonbar|from=Q252859}} {{Authority control}}
Category:Pompilidae Category:Articles containing video clips Category:Taxa named by Pierre André Latreille