''Ampulex'' is a large cosmopolitan genus of wasps belonging to the family

Ampulicidae The Ampulicidae, or cockroach wasps, are a small (about 170 species), primarily tropical family of sphecoid wasps, all of which use various cockroaches as prey for their larvae. They tend to have elongated jaws, pronounced neck-like constrictions ...

. Most of the >130 species occur in the tropics, particularly in the

Old World The "Old World" is a term for Afro-Eurasia that originated in Europe , after Europeans became aware of the existence of the Americas. It is used to contrast the continents of Africa, Europe, and Asia, which were previously thought of by the ...

, and fewer than 15 are known from the New World; fewer than 5 species are native to Europe or the United States, though the Old World species '' Ampulex compressa'' has spread to virtually everywhere that its host roaches (esp. the genus '' Periplaneta'') can be found. The few species whose biology is known are

parasitoid In evolutionary ecology, a parasitoid is an organism that lives in close association with its host (biology), host at the host's expense, eventually resulting in the death of the host. Parasitoidism is one of six major evolutionarily stable str ...

s of cockroaches; they typically inject venom into the roach that subdues or immobilizes it, and then lay one to two eggs between the legs of the defenseless roach.

Selected species

*'' Ampulex canaliculata'' Say, 1823 *'' Ampulex compressa''

Fabricius Fabricius ( la, smith, german: Schmied, Schmidt) is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *people from the Ancient Roman gens Fabricia: **Gaius Fabricius Luscinus, the first of the Fabricii to move to Rome * Johann Goldsmid (1587� ...

, 1781 – jewel wasp or emerald cockroach wasp *''

Ampulex dementor ''Ampulex dementor'' is a species of cockroach wasp native to Thailand, described in 2014 by Michael Ohl of the Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin, Germany Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. ...

'' Ohl, 2014 *'' Ampulex fasciata'' Jurine, 1807 *'' Ampulex ferruginea'' Bradley, 1934 *'' Ampulex ruficollis'' Cameron, 1889 For further species see ITIS.

References

Ampulicidae Biological pest control wasps Apoidea genera {{Apoidea-stub