Cicada killer wasps (

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

''Sphecius'') are large, solitary, ground-dwelling, predatory

wasp A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder. Th ...

s. They are so named because they hunt

cicada The cicadas () are a superfamily, the Cicadoidea, of insects in the order Hemiptera (true bugs). They are in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha, along with smaller jumping bugs such as leafhoppers and froghoppers. The superfamily is divided into two ...

s and provision their nests with them, after stinging and paralyzing them. Twenty-one

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

worldwide are recognized. The highest diversity occurs in the region between

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

and

Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...

. In North America, the term "cicada killer wasp" usually refers to the most well-known species, the eastern cicada killer (''S. speciosus''). A few other related genera also are sometimes referred to as "cicada killers", e.g. ''

Liogorytes The genus ''Liogorytes'' comprises a group of large, solitary, ground-dwelling, predatory South American wasps which hunt cicadas as prey. It is related to the more common genus of cicada killers, ''Sphecius''. References

Crabronidae ...

'' in South America and ''

Exeirus The Australian cicada killer wasp, ''Exeirus lateritius'', the sole member of the genus ''Exeirus'', is a large, solitary, ground-dwelling, predatory wasp. It is related to the more common genus of cicada killers, '' Sphecius''. In Australia, ' ...

'' in Australia. The use of cicadas as prey is in keeping with the typical behavior of the tribe Gorytini, which tend to specialize on various members of the

Cicadomorpha Cicadomorpha is an infraorder of the insect order Hemiptera which contains the cicadas, leafhoppers, treehoppers, and spittlebugs. There are approximately 35,000 described species worldwide. Distributed worldwide, all members of this group are p ...

as prey items.

Species

This list of species is probably complete as of March 31, 2009. It has been adapted from th
Catalog of ''Sphecius'' species
(California Academy of Sciences). Notable

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

are also given. More recently, it has been suspected that the

western cicada killer ''Sphecius grandis'', also called the western cicada killer, is a species of cicada killer wasp (''Sphecius''). The western species shares the same nesting biology as its fellow species, the eastern cicada killer ('' S. speciosus''). ''S. ...

('' S. grandis'') represents more than one species. Also, some evidence suggests that either the eastern cicada killer ('' S. speciosus'') has a subspecies or closely related species that

mimics Materialise Mimics is an image processing software for 3D design and modeling, developed by Materialise NV, a Belgian company specialized in additive manufacturing software and technology for medical, dental and additive manufacturing industries ...

the Pacific cicada killer ('' S. convallis''). Alternatively, when they were already well distinct species, significant

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two dif ...

ization has occurred between them, though not enough to fully overcome their

reproductive isolation The mechanisms of reproductive isolation are a collection of evolutionary mechanisms, behaviors and physiological processes critical for speciation. They prevent members of different species from producing offspring, or ensure that any offspring ...

. * ''

Sphecius antennatus Cicada killer wasps (genus ''Sphecius'') are large, solitary, ground-dwelling, predatory wasps. They are so named because they hunt cicadas and provision their nests with them, after stinging and paralyzing them. Twenty-one species worldwide are ...

'' (Klug, 1845) (Southern and Eastern Europe, Middle East, Central Asia) * ''

Sphecius citrinus Cicada killer wasps (genus ''Sphecius'') are large, solitary, ground-dwelling, predatory wasps. They are so named because they hunt cicadas and provision their nests with them, after stinging and paralyzing them. Twenty-one species worldwide are ...

'' Arnold, 1929 (South Africa) * ''

Sphecius claripennis Cicada killer wasps (genus ''Sphecius'') are large, solitary, ground-dwelling, predatory wasps. They are so named because they hunt cicadas and provision their nests with them, after stinging and paralyzing them. Twenty-one species worldwide are ...

'' Morice, 1911 (North Africa) * ''

Sphecius conicus Cicada killer wasps (genus ''Sphecius'') are large, solitary, ground-dwelling, predatory wasps. They are so named because they hunt cicadas and provision their nests with them, after stinging and paralyzing them. Twenty-one species worldwide are ...

'' (Germar, 1817) (Balkans, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Greece) ** ''Sphecius conicus creticus'' de Beaumont, 1965 (Crete) ** ''Sphecius conicus syriacus'' (Klug, 1845) (Syria to China) * ''

Sphecius convallis ''Sphecius convallis'', the Pacific cicada killer, is a species of sand wasp in the family Crabronidae The Crabronidae are a large paraphyletic group (nominally a family) of wasps, including nearly all of the species formerly comprising th ...

'' Patton, 1879 – Pacific cicada killer (Mexico: Baja California, Chihuahua, Jalisco, Nuevo León, Querétaro, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa, Sonora; USA: Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington) * ''

Sphecius grandidieri Cicada killer wasps (genus ''Sphecius'') are large, solitary, ground-dwelling, predatory wasps. They are so named because they hunt cicadas and provision their nests with them, after stinging and paralyzing them. Twenty-one species worldwide are ...

'' (de Saussure, 1887) (Madagascar) * ''

Sphecius grandis ''Sphecius grandis'', also called the western cicada killer, is a species of cicada killer wasp (''Sphecius''). The western species shares the same nesting biology as its fellow species, the eastern cicada killer ('' S. speciosus''). ''S. ...

'' (Say, 1823) – western cicada killer (Costa Rica; Mexico: Baja California, Chihuahua, Jalisco, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, Yucatán; Nicaragua; USA: Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington) * ''

Sphecius hemixanthopterus Cicada killer wasps (genus ''Sphecius'') are large, solitary, ground-dwelling, predatory wasps. They are so named because they hunt cicadas and provision their nests with them, after stinging and paralyzing them. Twenty-one species worldwide are ...

'' Morice, 1911 (Algeria) * '' Sphecius hogardii'' (Latreille, 1806) – Caribbean cicada killer (Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, USA: southern Florida) ** ''Sphecius hogardii bahamas'' Krombein, 1953 (Bahama Islands: Bimini) * '' Sphecius intermedius'' Handlirsch, 1895 (Algeria) * '' Sphecius lutescens'' (Radoszkowski, 1877) (Central Asia) * '' Sphecius malayanus'' Handlirsch, 1895 (Indonesia: Timor, Sumbava) * '' Sphecius milleri'' R.Turner, 1915 (Zambia) ** ''Sphecius milleri aurantiacus'' Arnold, 1940 (Ethiopia) * ''

Sphecius nigricornis Cicada killer wasps (genus ''Sphecius'') are large, solitary, ground-dwelling, predatory wasps. They are so named because they hunt cicadas and provision their nests with them, after stinging and paralyzing them. Twenty-one species worldwide are ...

'' (Dufour, 1838) (Southern and Eastern Europe, North Africa) * '' Sphecius pectoralis'' (F.Smith, 1856) (Australia) * '' Sphecius persa'' Gussakovskij, 1933 (Iran, Afghanistan) * '' Sphecius quartinae'' (Gribodo, 1884) (Guinea, Somalia) * '' Sphecius schulthessi'' Roth, 1951 (North Africa) * '' Sphecius speciosus'' (Drury, 1773) – Eastern cicada killer (Central and North America: Honduras to Ontario, Canada) * '' Sphecius spectabilis'' (Taschenberg, 1875) – South American cicada killer (Brazil, Argentina) * '' Sphecius uljanini'' (Radoszkowski, 1877) (Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Iran)

References

External links

cicada killers, ''Sphecius'' spp.
on the UF /

IFAS IFAS may refer: * Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences * Integrated Fixed-Film Activated Sludge, a sewage treatment process * International French adjectival system In rock climbing, mountaineering, and other climbing disciplines, clim ...

Featured Creatures Web site {{Taxonbar, from=Q2710050 Crabronidae Biological pest control wasps Taxa named by Anders Gustaf Dahlbom