The Ampulicidae, or cockroach wasps, are a small (about 170 species), primarily tropical family of sphecoid

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 ...

s, all of which use various

cockroaches Cockroaches (or roaches) are a paraphyletic group of insects belonging to Blattodea, containing all members of the group except termites. About 30 cockroach species out of 4,600 are associated with human habitats. Some species are well-known ...

as prey for their larvae. They tend to have elongated jaws, pronounced neck-like constrictions behind the head, strongly petiolate abdomens, and deep grooves on the

thorax The thorax or chest is a part of the anatomy of humans, mammals, and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main divisions of the c ...

. Many are quite ant-like in appearance, though some are brilliant metallic blue, green, and hot pink. Most species sting the roach more than once and in a specific way. The first sting is directed at nerve ganglia in the cockroach's thorax, temporarily paralyzing the victim for a few minutes - more than enough time for the wasp to deliver a second sting. The second sting is directed into a region of the cockroach's brain that controls the escape reflex, among other things. Piper, Ross (2007), ''Extraordinary Animals: An Encyclopedia of Curious and Unusual Animals'',

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. When the cockroach has recovered from the first sting, it makes no attempt to flee. The wasp clips the antenna with its mandibles and drinks some of the

haemolymph Hemolymph, or haemolymph, is a fluid, analogous to the blood in vertebrates, that circulates in the interior of the arthropod (invertebrate) body, remaining in direct contact with the animal's tissues. It is composed of a fluid plasma in which ...

before walking backwards and dragging the roach by its clipped antenna to steer it to a burrow, where an egg will be laid on it. The wasp larva feeds on the subdued, living cockroach.

Classification

Classification of Ampulicidae follows the Catalog of Sphecidae by Wojciech J. Pulawski,

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: Ampulicinae *Ampulicini **'' Ampulex'' – 132 species, found worldwide **'' Trirogma'' – 7 species from Asia Dolichurinae *Aphelotomini **'' Aphelotoma'' – 8 species from Australia **'' Riekefella'' – 1 species from Australia *Dolichurini **'' Dolichurus'' – 50 species, found worldwide **'' Paradolichurus'' – 4 species from the New World

References

Apocrita families Insects used as insect pest control agents Biological pest control wasps Taxa named by William Edward Shuckard {{Apoidea-stub